The Art of Uncovering
by nedfan
Summary: Despite previous experiences, they try just another stakeout. Or is it? The up-market façade of Kalorama, Washington DC seems the perfect cover for up-market schemes. But in unveiling an Art thief, Sue and Jack discover much more...
1. Chapter 1

**L**es sanglots longs des violons de l'automne,  
Blessent mon cœur s'une langueur monotone.  
Tout suffocant et blême, quand sonne l'heure,  
Je me souviens des jours anciens et je pleure;  
Et je m'en vais au vent mauvais qui m'emporte

Deçà, delà, pareil à la feuille morte.

_(_

_**T**he lengthy sobs of Autumn's violin,_

_Ache my heart with a monotone longing._

_Everything suffocates and withers, because its time is nigh,_

_As I remember the days gone by and I cry;_

_And then I'm gone, with the menacing wind that carries me_

_Back and forth like an arid leaf.)_

**Paul Verlaine**, _Chanson d'Automne, _1866

**I**

**L**ike fluid tentacles of sinisterness and secrecy, the grey ubiquitous fog rolled over the damp leaf-covered grounds as it devoured more and more of the land, draping an impenetrable veil wherever it touched. Curling round the soft glistening stems of the trees, whispering through the foliage, it began masking the colourful palette of autumn nature so carefully had tried to put to display. A soft breeze shredded the thickness a little, dispersing rags of grey and white past the sienna-patched orange-golden oaks and aspen, the yellow beeches, where they ultimately pierced on the green pines and firs that had infiltrated the colourfulness with their monotone tints of everlasting green.

Silence settled as the wind died down and the rustling of the swaying twigs and branches slowly halted; twirling leafs that had been the toy of the wind's playfulness just before now gracefully meandered back to earth where they settled on top of the brown and tan layer of their ancestors that had overwhelmed the soil like an Airborne army.

Moisture from the rags of mist that condensed lay a shimmering light on them, the twigs of the trees encompassed in droplets that shone like pearls before they fell on the bed of leafs with soft dull thuds in an endless rhythm that accompanied the advance of the fog like a marching band parading the troops.

The greyness didn't only shy away the magnificence of the surroundings, it also narrowed the world, erasing the memory of what had been and lay ahead as visibility faltered. Shielding away the daylight that barely made it through the upper clouds, the warmth of earlier autumn days vanished only to be replaced by the first streaks of the oncoming winter as temperatures dropped.

The tranquillity and stillness of it all, the absence of life and a world void of sounds, was therefore so much more compromised as footsteps broke through and movement dispersed the idleness as a woman emerged from the rags of mist walking slowly. The dampness made a few strands of golden hair stick to her cheeks as little droplets of water had settled on her clothes. Her motions were solemn as she progressed further, the moisture on her face was fiercely claimed by the both the weather and the tears of her own she must have shed before.

Her arms folded she hunched a little to shield herself a little against the elements and the wind that increasingly pierced through her damp coat and trousers whenever it picked up again. She was glad her boots weren't wet yet but she shivered nonetheless. She didn't need to look at her watch to know she had been wandering for several hours. Despite the rags of clouds and the disorientating effects they could have, she knew exactly where she was; she had been here countless times before and out of instinct she headed for the heavy oak recreational bench that was dark with moisture it had sucked up through the pits and grooves. In clear weather, it offered a most gentle view of the slopes that rose from Rock Creek to Barnaby Woods and Hawthorne. Now, the display of colours was more obscured, but she didn't care.

Susan Thomas, Special Investigative Analyst with the FBI Washington DC field office, didn't know what she could care about anymore. The refuge she sought here, undisturbed and quiet, hopefully contributed to finding meaning in everything that had happened, and calm in the stormy mess she called her emotional life. Sighing deeply she let her fingers follow the lines in the wood as she contemplated on what to do, feeling the wet smooth material and the rugged hard pitches. In that same instant a soft vibration on one of her thighs stirred her as her cell phone buzzed with an incoming call.

Fatigue washed down over her as the phone kept on going, feeling more like an unwelcome trespasser than her line with her life elsewhere. She didn't know who was calling, but the possibilities were rather limited. One she did not feel ready to talk to yet, and one she couldn't possibly handle to talk to at all. Feeling how her throat constricted once again with the same lump that she in vain had tried to digest through hiking out in the woods, she shifted her weight and felt how the adamant buzzing decreased from direct touch until it finally stopped completely. Shortly closing her eyes a hint of rest and tranquillity sparked, and then it was gone when the full imagery of the time gone by resurfaced before her eyes. Vigorously expelling the calm and tumbling her back into chaos and pain once more.

She had always characterised herself as intelligent and smart, her upbringing in rural Ohio had taught her sobriety and reason hence she couldn't fully fathom why she had stumbled over something that had been sobering and hurtful the first time anew. Smiling weakly, her lips barely moving she watched how a few leafs danced over the soil with the wind, their bright yellow and red, sienna and orange colours twirling in a graceful waltz until they collided with her feet as she acknowledged one part of her that had led her down that same path again.

It was her strongest virtue, and at the same time her weakest point: her heart.

Her best friend Lucy, the team's rotor and her roommate for years, once said "Your heart's big enough to contain the world, but can be filled with just one." That 'one' was precisely the reason she was here today. Her heart ached and her stomach felt as if a strong hand painfully squeezed it tight as she mourned another chance gone and relinquished a new scar being torn on her already bruised and battered soul.

_You could have known it would end like this again,_ she chastised herself as a wave of bitterness drew her jaws' muscles tight as if she was about to throw up with self-disgust. She cursed herself for her naivety that led her open-eyed in the same pitfall of their earlier assignment. The aftermath of their previous 'marriage' had been nothing short of harrowing as she suddenly felt the full impact of the life she dreamed about but couldn't have. It had taken quite a while before she had come to terms with her feelings, to a degree. If emotion dyed life sweet, the touch of salt that spoiled the bliss would undoubtedly be ratio. Her mind and heart forcibly collided, knowing it could never have lasted, but wishing it had.

She had sworn never to be hurt like that again, not by him nor by anyone else. But when the upper brass of the Bureau conjured up another assignment, she succumbed under the pressure of her heart that longed for feeling the same bliss she had felt during their previous marriage. Like an addict starved for the drug it needed, she gave in eventually, fully aware the preferences would be the same as before but the crave for that blissful feeling overcame the best reasoning her ratio could provide. She leaned against the bench's back and closed her eyes as she relived everything again.


	2. Chapter 2

**T**he only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. Resist it and your soul grows sick with longing for the things it has forbidden to itself.

**Oscar Wilde, **_The Picture of Dorian Gray, _1891

**II**

**S**he never stood a chance in fighting a battle that had long ago been won by her heart, and perhaps battle is misplaced when the only feeling you have ever known is a deep-rooted longing and love for someone. Through the opened French Doors that led to her back garden a very light breeze carried the fresh, almost sweet, aroma of a summer afternoon as she curled her bare feet under her as she sat on the sofa staring out on the neatly trimmed grass and the purple and blue strands of lavender bush that softly swayed. Their characteristic aroma filled the air, resembling almost a perfect day in the French Provence where her father had taken the small plants from that now bloomed in perfection next to the bright orange and red of the poppy's. However wonderful, it stood no chance against him, his scent so unique she had often doubted whether Grenouille, the perfume-master from Suskinds novel _Perfume_, would have been able to recreate it.

Her fingertips wetted when she took the glass of chilled Chenin-Colombard from the table next to her seat, the warmer air condensed on the colder glass letting the sunlight that touched it illuminate it like it was embroidered with hundreds of tiny diamonds. The dry-sour, sweet-vanilla wine was the perfect companion for the occasion, its fragrance and taste as delicate as the fine glass which held it.

In these cosy hours of the day she could only imagine one more element that would complete the picture. To be able to hold him close and press her nose in his neck, feeling him, smelling him. Let her fingers trail the contours of his dark brows, revel in the fine dark lashes that crowned a set of the most intense and mesmerising set of chocolate eyes she had ever known.

She had long ceased to think coherently and professionally about her former mentor and the team's leader Jack Hudson. In fact, in all honesty she wasn't sure whether she ever had. Still vividly remembering her halfway-halted rent when she had stormed into his office as he turned those enchanted eyes on him and that cheeky grin that melted away any reserve and resilience and made her knees wobbly countless of times afterwards.

She smiled as she put the glass to her lips, her other hand absently trailing through Levi's fur that in its smoothness bore resemblance to the touch of his hair she had felt on those few occasions when they had become more close, culminating in their kiss in the office of Callahan and Merced. She knew she had tasted heaven right there and then and therefore the pain afterwards as they broke up, in more ways than one, was so much more intense that it resembled torture: she knew what she would be bereft of from there on.

That came on top of the loss she had already felt after the Arif Dessa case when they went undercover as a newlywed couple. It had been a time of part work part bliss as she was able to spent time close-up and personal away from preying eyes with the man that had captured her heart. Something grew in the time together although hesitantly at first, and it wasn't for long their momentarily matrimonial status unnervingly struck home when she realised this was what she longed for. To be with him, either married or not, and to have him be hers and vice versa. At the same time the hindrance of their '_mariage blanc_' worked to their disadvantage when both hesitated at taking the next step. Something she came to regret later when the case was over and their unique chance vanished as well.

She read regret in his eyes and something else she couldn't pinpoint when she and Lucy drove off from the house that would have given them the perfect alibi to start something truly wonderful. Her heart pained when she saw him like that, adding to the burden of leaving that felt as if she just said farewell to a dearly beloved. Partir c'est mourir un peu, which in fact wasn't very far from the truth anyway, she figured as she took another sip of her wine and placed the glass back on the table. The same melancholy trickled down her features as she remember that day and the difficulty she had had to come to terms with their 'normal' relationship afterwards.

She never really did.

Stirred when Levi got up suddenly and trotted to the hall and came back wiggling his tail she turned a little to see Lucy coming in. "GOOD EVENING," she said.

"GOOD EVENING," Sue responded. "I didn't hear you come in." Lucy's lips curled up in a broad smile as she laughed with her friend's remark and the cheeky expression she had. "I tried to be very silent." She put her purse on the table as she kicked her shoes off and sat down on one of the cardinal-red pillow covered champagne sofas that elegantly countered the light-cognac parquet. "I can see you provided the ideal afternoon ingredient."

Sue smiled and got up to get another glass. The yellow golden translucent fluid curled up against the glass' walls, drawing a thin watery veil that dyed the blanc glass a tint darker before it rolled back like an ocean's wave. She handed Lucy her glass before she sat down again. "How was today? Anything newsworthy?"

Her late season summer holidays had just ended for her after she had spent a fortnight back in Ohio, visiting old friends and enjoying time with her family. Still on leave she had spent the day at home where she finally had some time to read books she hadn't touched in ages, mucking about in the garden and holding on to the relaxed condition of the previous weeks.

"How much do you want to know?" Lucy took a sip of her wine and gestured at the bottle. "And how much more do you have of this?"

"Plenty."

"Then there's plenty to tell," she smiled.

"FUNNY YOU"

Outside the sky was dyed a beautiful tint of crimson and purple as the light of the already set sun tried to hold on to it, battling the falling night and the darkness it brought. Lucy stared at it for a while before she spoke again, playing with the glass in her hands. "I don't know where to start really."

"I was only gone for two weeks…" Sue lips curled up in a smile, "and we kept contact regularly. I meant only for today."

"I know." Lucy's answer had her puzzled and deep down she felt something was stirred and the tiniest of discomfort began to trickle into her system. The gaining night had expelled the last remnants of light and warmth and through the opened doors the first touches of cold rolled in, and Sue got up to close the doors. Putting on a few extra lights before she went back to her seat, she couldn't shake off the growing insecurity her friend's remark had triggered.

"What happened?"

"Well, nothing happened, basically, it's just…" Lucy looked at Sue and pursed her lips a little. "It's the Beckett case."

Sue squinted her eyes a little. "Help me out here, this landed our desks while I was away right?"

"Interstate art and antiques theft, we were told by various sources that a series of burglaries in Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania and even as high as Rhode Island are in fact all connected. Centre of all allegedly is a Oscar Beckett, living in the Kalorama neighbourhood here."

"A very up-market neighbourhood."

"Affluent and influent as well and that's why we're very cautious about the inquest we're starting. We're just tipped off, there's no evidence yet to go on."

"So what's up with the case that seems to be troubling you?" Sue decided to give in to her initial feelings of uneasiness and her keen sense of bodily language that told her something about it made Lucy feel reluctant to share.

"Mr. and Mrs. Beckett live in a rather sophisticated and quiet area of Kalorama, where any observation from the street would immediately be noticed. SOG is out of the picture and that's why the higher ups decided to try an old textbook classic undercover sting again."

The glass of wine she was halfway in the process of bringing to her lips halted somewhere mid chest as something clicked inside her brain. Feeling how her stomach tightened she backed off a little, sitting straight. "Oh no, nooo…"

With trembling hands she managed to put down the glass safely before it would fall out of her hands. "Please don't tell me what I think that has been discussed…"

Lucy's expression pained as she saw her best friend's anxiety and she just nodded. Closing her eyes she felt the muscles in her jaw tighten, feeling the initial drips of acid anxiety had swollen to a tidal wave of nausea and discomfort. Gone was the relaxed feeling her weeks in Ohio had provided. She was back in the world of hurt and bitter reality she found such a bliss to be able to flee from a fortnight ago. "WHY QQ"

"ns. GARRETT, SUGGESTION ONLY."

Sue shot up from her seat as she shook her head, her blonde hair swaying back and forth with the motions as she paced to the garden doors and stared out into the darkness. "No, no, they _never_ just suggest something. Especially not something like that." She turned round to face Lucy again as she ran a hand through her hair, trembling. "They want it, Lucy. And I know exactly who they have in mind."

"I never said…" she began but was cut through by Sue. "As God is my witness, I won't do this again!"

Lucy opened her mouth to respond, but realized that Sue was not looking at her as she paced back and forth. "I will not be Mrs. Hudson again! This is worse than 'always a bridesmaid, never a bride'! It's cruel and I won't be subjected to heartache any more!" Sue stopped suddenly and turned to Lucy. "Tara can be Mrs. Hudson! Yes, that will do very nicely! Tara can do it! For some reason she's able to handle those chocolate brown eyes...she doesn't swoon every time he looks at her...she doesn't dream of him every night...she won't be hurt because he's pretending to love..."  
Sue realized too late what she was admitting and clamped her mouth shut. Through the tears in her eyes, she looked at Lucy. "I won't do it again!" Her determined stance visibly faltered as she sat down on the armrest of the chair, her hands folded. "You have any idea how much pain it caused the first time?" Her voice soft, almost whispering. She heaved her head and stared at the ceiling for a second, swallowing hard, before she focused on Lucy again. The lights of the living room reflected in the moist eyes adding a soft shimmer in the hazel colour that lend them an almost fragile appearance. "I can't do it…."

Lucy reached out to grasp her friend's hands. "No one will force you to, sweetheart."

"They will, and I'll buckle…"

"Not if I can help it."

Sue wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. "It just has to be him asking and I'll give in, you know that…" She slowly shook her head, her eyes uncertain as she looked back up again. "I never made it a secret to you how I much I love him, did I?"

Lucy smiled a comforting smile. "Never through your gestures. I never heard you admit it in words though, until now. But that you love him I already knew."

Despite her tears, Sue began to laugh, feeling the quivering turmoil in her stomach mixing with a bit of ecstasy she didn't have to pretend anymore. "Was it that obvious?"

"I don't know about obvious, but if you understand the signals, then yes; it has been noticed for a while that the special bond you have at least on your part had matured into something more than that." She squeezed Sue's hands comforting and winked. "To some, I should add."

"It felt as if I was choking when we drove off the last time… I couldn't breathe, the pain in my heart so strong it almost made me think I was having a cardiac arrest…" She didn't have to explain what occasion she was referring to, and Lucy quietly waited for her friend to continue what she had buried for so long and couldn't hold back anymore. "I thought we'd become close and something magical was in the air when everything fell apart." Her eyes wetted again as she swallowed her pent up emotions. "I never expected…." Her voice faltered and she paused. "I thought it meant something for him as well, that _I_ meant something for him. I guess I was wrong then."

"Sweetheart, you know that's not true."

"How would I know? What chance of knowing did I get?"

"At Callahan and Merced."

Sue huffed as she reached for her glass and emptied it in one swig, her lips drawn with bitterness. "Yeah, right."

"I remember you told me how it felt…"

"How _I_ felt it, to him it was nothing more than improvising in an unexpected situation."

"I cannot believe that. I've seen the way he looked at you afterwards."

"I had trouble believing it too, Lucy, but time has been a sobering master in matters like these. There's nothing to prove otherwise."

"There could be a new chance…" Lucy probed cautiously. Sue closed her eyes shortly and sighed a trembling sigh. "Don't you start too."

"I'm merely suggesting that you don't give up hope."

"I got the impression you tried to lull me into doing it after all." She rubbed her eyes and rested her fatigued head on the rim of the chair's back. It was silent for a while. "You know what scares me the most?" she said as she sat up more straight again, "that part of me wants to do it. My heart screams Yes, my mind says No…"

"Ratio is always a burdening factor in matters of the heart," Lucy responded and she poured Sue a new drink. "You must do what you deem to be wise."

Smiling a dreamy smile, Sue nodded as she took her glass. "I'm a mess in matters like this. I'm marked already since I know how living together feels like, albeit in a counterfeit matter. Right there and then I knew that it was something I wanted. Perhaps even needed." She looked at Lucy again. "Can you imagine the grief it caused when we broke up?"

"I had my theories when you came back."

"Leaving that house felt as if I abandoned the perfect chance to get what I wanted, and I felt like I didn't put enough effort into it to actually achieve it."

"Nonsense, time was harsh on you." Lucy smiled sympathetically. "Who knows what could happen this time?"

_Damned_, she thought, the more they discussed it, the more she wanted to do it even though her mind screamed 'no' she was already lost. Lucy was right, a chance not taken is a chance bereaved for she would always have to live with the burden of 'what if?'.

"I can see you have already made a decision…"

"What choice do I have? I love him, I want to be with him. If this is the best I can get besides the real deal, I'll have to." She smiled tenderly. "And I'm scared as hell it will result in nothing but pain and hurt."

"We'll make it work." Lucy took her friend's hands in hers before she hugged her. "I just wanted to say that I'm in awe with your courage."

"It's either courage or stupidity, I'm not sure which one applies best…"


	3. Chapter 3

**A**ut nunquam tentes, aut perfice

_(**D**o not endeavour into something without completing it)_

**Ovidius,** _Ars amatoria (de arte amandi)_ Book I, 389 AD

**III**

**T**here's a fine line between wisdom and insanity. And in reality, it's arguable whether there actually is a difference between both. To one something may seem a well weighed decision that to another defines anything but; in matters of heart and mind both sides can forcibly collide, but whose argument is best? There's no final answer because of one's inability to foresee the future of someone's decision that could provide the valid argument to end all discussion. Sue had given in to the arguments of her heart, but as she was about to enter the offices where she worked the internal discourse never faltered. Was she about to pursue a _fata morgana_, where she could reasonably expect things to go wrong, or was it the right thing to do that would lead to achieve something she strived and longed for all those years?

"Good morning," a set of well-known lips formed a message of welcome that immediately favoured the latter option as Jack looked up from his desktop and got up to welcome her back.

"Good morning," she answered and smiled. The small leap of her heart as she lay eyes on him that accompanied most, if not all, mornings confirmed that her quest was genuine.

"How was your holiday?" He sat down on the corner of his desk as he watched her put down her purse on her desk and drape her light-blue woollen cardigan over her chair; a feat he had missed seeing for those two weeks.

"Good," she answered. "I'm up to date with all the latest Thomas-gossip, we had fair weather all weeks long."

"High up in the 70's, I noticed."

"Oh?" she raised her brows a little, surprised he knew and feeling at the same time a slight jolt of joy. "You've been checking me out?"

He laughed, "I like to be informed about the well-being of important team members."

"All members are important…"

"True, but one is allowed to make differences."

"I see…" She stroked back a strand of her hair that fell over her cheek. "You haven't been tracking my cell phone either have you?" He threw his head back as he laughed, the light in his eyes shining bright with joy as he focused back on her. "No, that would be stalking, and I doubt whether I would get a court order as well."

"Probably not."

"No. So, while you were away did any news from here trickled upwards into the Buckeye State? Or have you blissfully forgotten us?"

_I couldn't forget even if I wanted, especially not you_. She smiled, "Lucy has kept me up to date, more or less."

"Right, good. Although I was looking forward to give you an update over lunch."

"You still can," she said and she shied her eyes away for just a fraction of a second. "About the Beckett case." She looked him in the eyes and saw the glimmer of amusement they displayed just a few seconds ago flicker and die out. "She already told you?"

Sue just nodded. "How much did she tell?"

"Interstate grand theft, arts and antiques. And the high brass opting for another stakeout as next-door neighbours in Kalorama."

"Did she tell you about…"

"The wedding-game?" Sue bit her lower lip and nodded. "Yes, she did."

"It wasn't my first idea, in fact, it wasn't my idea at all." He tried to smile a comforting I-can't-help-it-either smile. Surprisingly, she felt a pang of regret and hurt when he said that. She could live with him suggesting the idea, apparently, that would be a sign she had interpreted the signs of regret at their previous break-up right. His denial hurt, as if he truly did not felt something special the last time.

He could see something in her eyes he could only classify as hurt, which surprised him. "I mean, I didn't object either, you know…" He paused to gauge her reaction. "Not at all, in fact…" That brought back a glimmer of joy and inwardly he felt relief settling. "There's just one point about it."

"What?"

"They would like to see we start tonight." He held up his hands defensively. "I objected that it was on such short notice, especially for you, but they said we could manage."

"Tonight?"

"Yeah."

She ran a hand through her hair and blew a strand that fell over he lips away. "Well, seems my weeks spent in relaxation were not in vain, with hindsight." She smiled.

"I'm sorry we don't have more time to prepare."

"Why, we're used to adapt quickly, besides," she nudged him playfully, "we have experience on this matter don't we?" Her light-heartedness made him feel at ease immediately and he felt the same admiration for her he had felt the first time they met; her ability to make people comfortable and her kind nature never failed to get to him. This time was no exception as he silently revelled in her features and the way her blonde hair cascaded over her shoulders, each motion graceful. He had lost count of how many times he had been lost in the depths of her hazel eyes, nor did he try to.

When she walked into the office again this morning it felt as if everything was complete again, her absence working on his mood every time he saw her empty desk. Each and every time the chill around his heart palpable as if it was yesterday she had told him about that New York job offer and today had been the day that she had left definitely. It felt as if someone pressed an ice-pack against his chest, stalling his breath until he pulled himself together when he realised she was only away on holiday.

When the Beckett case came along their way and the assignment was being considered, he immediately jumped right on it, hoping his eagerness wasn't too suspicious, but the higher ups had been enthusiastic as well and he had brought Sue forward as their best option because of her unique abilities. They gave him their fiat right away and things were set in motion, he had only hoped he would have had more time to prepare her for it. And to be prepared to spend time close up with the woman that had captured his heart during their first undercover assignment. Time had run out on them before the smouldering attraction between them could have flared up into a full blown fire.

As Lucy's Jeep Cherokee drove off with Sue, he just stood there unable to move or do anything. She vanished from his life or so it felt anyway and an opportunity was lost. The heartache he felt that day closely resembled the heart-attack he had had in intensity. For days he had pondered over what she had wanted to say or do just before she left and he had sworn there had been regret in her eyes when they said goodbye. It would certainly have matched the part he felt. With this new assignment he had a new chance, a new excuse perhaps, to set things straight and find out if they were meant to be.

"Jack?" her voice broke through. He realised he must have been staring, lost in thoughts. "SORRY," he said, "DISTRACTED"

She smiled a full blossoming smile with his remark. "I could tell, I already began to doubt whether I was the one Deaf here when you didn't respond."

"What were you asking?"

"Before we go out tonight and pretend, I think we might as well match our stories and get the details straight. We don't want to be found out, now do we?"

If he was honest, he had to admit he hated to hear her use the word 'pretend' because he would love to see it differently, but apparently she saw it that way. "Yes," he said.

"Yes? You want to be found out?" Her voice was an amused smirk.

"What? No, no of course not. I meant No we don't want to," he hastily corrected himself, "found out that is." _Idiot, she's back less than half an hour and you're already rambling incoherently._

"Good," she said. "We're on the same line." She smiled just before she turned round when Levi pawed when the other team members came in. "Hey guys…"

"If it isn't our Susan Thomas, marriage broker in disguise. Your holiday cover was perfect, sneaky coming back earlier and eloping with Jack," Bobby said as he grinned broadly. "Again, I must add. Miss Thomas, or should I say Mrs. Hudson has a habit of luring men into marriage before they even know what happened," Myles added just before he hugged her. "Holiday has done you well," he said, "or is it Sparky here to blame?"

"Alright, alright," she said, smiling with their banter even though parts of it stung. "I think I have to set things straight here."

"Just have that man of yours act straight, we'll manage," Bobby said. Sue rolled her eyes, knowing it wouldn't stop for a while and the more she fought it, the more they enjoyed the teasing so she opted for ignorance instead. Which wouldn't make any difference, she knew.

"I heard you already picked out a house?"

"In a most fashionable neighbourhood, no less," Myles said.

"Yeah, one we couldn't afford to live in with our income."

"Well, now they're married, they have a double income which would render it more easy."

"Oh, the conveniences of married life…"

"…plus the alimentation from her previous one…"

"Don't pay attention to them, they're just jealous," Dimitrius said, having followed the bantering after he came in. "Being bachelors, they just don't know what they miss." He hugged her as well, welcoming her back. "How was your holiday, I hope you had time to relax?"

"Plenty of time, and well needed," Sue said. "I had a great time, but it's good to be back as well. You never know what could change in the matter of two weeks."

"Your marital status, for one," Bobby quipped, as Myles couldn't retain his smile.

"You guys are hopeless…"

"That's why Garrett has given both of you the rest of the day off to prepare for the assignment, pack your belongings and do whatever newlyweds do on their first day in their new home," Dimitrius said, slipping in a quip of his own.

"NOW US GO WILL QQ" Jack said as she focused back on him, his eyes pleading knowing the teasing wouldn't stop until they were gone. And continue when they got back. She nodded, her right hand in a 'Y' tapping down twice bending from the wrist.

"You behave, okay? And don't forget we want old Sparky back the way he was," Bobby teased as they all said their goodbyes for now.

"Whereto?" she asked as they descended with the lift to the garage. "Your place," Jack said, "I had the time to pack my stuff earlier, that leaves only you to pack."

"I'm glad I didn't unpack all of my suitcases yet. I could take those as well."

"You never know what comes in handy," he said.


	4. Chapter 4

Their drive to her home began uneventful but during the ride she felt a slight gibberish feeling settling low in her stomach as the full impact of their assignment began to dawn on her as she sneaked glances at the man next to her. _What on earth had she put herself into this time?_

It was part rhetorical question, part wondering why she had agreed to do it in the first place. She knew exactly what she had put herself into, again. The man next to her, the same that figured in many thoughts and nightly dreams would be next to her for the next days or perhaps even weeks. Literally within arms' reach and set in circumstances that she could have only dreamed about previously. The only complicating factor that disturbed the otherwise idyllic set of circumstances was her own boldness, or rather the lack of it, to take matters in control and make him aware just how much he meant to her.

"We're here," he said when she glanced his way. Her absent expression made it clear to him she hadn't noticed it and was lost in a world of her own, he could only guess what she was thinking about. But he had noticed a few times she had been looking at him. He smiled. "PLACE (you) ARRIVE FINISH."

"SORRY," she said, "DISTRACTED." And she smiled a warm smile. "ME KNOW," he answered. _I can relate to that._ As both of them got out, with Levi close behind, she took her keys out of her purse as she walked to the front door. She bowed her head slightly when she looked into her purse and her blonde hair fell over her cheeks. With a gracious motion she rocked it back with her head and the twirling golden tresses of hair had him spellbound. He immediately realised the next days or even weeks would be filled with magical moments like this and suddenly he didn't mind if their assignment would be everlasting.

"Will you help me pack?" she asked as she closed the door behind him.

"Of course," he said, "if you know what you'd like to bring along."

"Well, since we're moving to Kalorama, I'd figured we'd go for the more upmarket clothing." She looked at him, mustering his wardrobe, "I hope you'll match as well…"

"Hey, I did some last minute shopping at Brooks Brothers as well, I think I'll look the part." His semi-insulted expression made her smile. "And if you do not, we'll have to go shopping, I can't have my husband looking cheap." The words husband made her feel a little peculiar, but a sense of pride and joy were mixed with it as well.

"Your husband, eh?" A glimmer of amusement was shining in the dark mesmerising pools that made up his eyes. "I like the sound of that…"

"Yeah, well, don't flatter yourself, Hudson. It still is an arranged marriage."

That -despite it was the truth- hurt, he had to admit. Determined not to let it show he reached in his pocket and took out a small box. She had turned round and was on her way up so he followed suit, Levi on his tail. "Levi, get Sue," he summoned the Golden Retriever as she had entered her bedroom. The dog happily trotted to his mistress and pawed her. She turned round to see what was happening when she saw him standing on the threshold of her bedroom. Something about him made her halt her breath and she suddenly felt her stomach knot.

He took a few steps towards her. He looked up from whatever he held in his hands into her eyes. "I eh," he began, his hesitation palpable. "I'm sorry I have to do it this way…" He opened his hand and she saw the little black velvet box in his palm. He smiled, and opened it. Her breath caught as she saw two golden rings embedded in soft crème-coloured silk, the light that touched the surface letting the metal shine with a diamond touch. Her eyes glued to the box she saw how his fingers carefully took out one of the rings, a fraction smaller than the other. It took all her strength to look up again and meet his eyes, fearing she couldn't hide how much this moment –albeit constructed- touched her inner most.

She immediately recognised the rings as soon as he had opened the lid. They were the exact same rings they had worn during their first marriage. She felt touched he had remembered.

"Would you…" he began, "would you do me the honour to be my wife, Sue?"

She could have sworn he actually proposed to her, not just offering her the ring. But her mind dismissed the feeling. _He couldn't._ She smiled, swallowing a forming lump before it would render her unable to use her voice. "Yes," she said. "I do."

Cautiously he took her right hand, his touch electrifying, and carefully he slid the ring over her finger. The long lingering touch sent her heart racing, his touch warming wherever his skin was upon hers as she followed his every move with her eyes, breath held. Halfway she thought she'd go crazy, everything she dreamed about, needed and longed for culminating in this small gesture that only took a few seconds but felt as if hours passed by. She felt a pang of regret when his touch broke. Unable to move or do anything for a few seconds, she just stared at the gold that encircled her finger as it softly glowed in the daylight that shone inside.

Finally she turned and twisted her hand and finger as she admired the view, a warm and tender smile breaking through. She looked back up again and caught his eyes that were fixed on her and the ring on her finger just before he snapped them away.

She took the other ring from the box. "Will you do me the honour of becoming my husband?"

"Yes, I do," she saw his lips forming the words she had longed for to see. _And someday for real_ she added inwardly. In an equally tantalising gesture, she put the ring on his finger, slowly; stalling the moment the magic would be over. She looked up into his eyes and for a fraction of a second he felt the urge to kiss her and he inched a little closer before he admonished himself. _Get a grip on it Hudson, it's just an assignment for her_. It took him all his strength to pull back.

"You had the same set of rings back," she said after a while.

"I kept them."

His simple statement had been anything but to her. "You kept them?"

He smiled coyly. "Yeah…"

"Thank you," she said, "for keeping them."

"No problem."

"What, eh…" she began, "what's our name actually?"

"Hudson." He smiled. "Unless you object of course…"

_How could she ever object to such a name?_ "It's perfect."

"I'll eh, I'll put the kettle on," he said after they had been standing around a bit clumsily and ran his hand through his hair. "You pick out the things you need and after tea we can pack, okay?" He felt the urge to have a few moments in private, moments that he could just stare at the ring round his finger and the bond it suggested with the beautiful blonde who had captured his heart unconditionally and that now wore the exact same one. She just nodded.

He almost ran down the stairs, his heart about to explode from his chest. The intimacy the ceremony had just created almost too much to bear, especially because she didn't feel the same about it as he did. As much as he was excited about this new assignment, he was also aware of the awkwardness it would create. He felt for the ring on his finger, verifying it was still there and he admired the view of it as he let water run into the kettle before he put it on the stove. Leaning against the kitchen table he toyed the ring round his finger, feeling how the once cold metal already had warmed up through his body warmth, to him symbolising the passion that burned inside for her.

The moment he left her room, her knees buckled and her legs gave way as she barely managed to sit on her bed in time. Letting go of a quivering sigh she brought her finger to her lips and pressed it to her lips as she closed her eyes, feeling how the ring touched, leaving a warm sensation where it made contact. His confession that he had kept the rings had touched her deeply. If there was any way of falling deeper in love with him, she had just done that.

_I love you…_


	5. Chapter 5

The sunlight that fell through the window dyed everything it touched with a golden shine, sometimes filtered as the green foliage of the majestic oak danced before it as the soft wind let the branches sway and the twigs twirl. The grey and black shadows wrinkling over the cupboard and joyfully dancing over the kitchen table. The steam that rose from their cups at times dyed all wonderful colours as sunrays brushed over it. Seeing how the light brightened his features, curling over the rims of his dark brows, cascading down his cheeks and those mesmerising lips she knew she was seeing heaven. She took her cup and blew in it before she took a sip and felt how the hot liquid lulled her senses. "How did me meet, exactly?"

"What?" he said, stirred from daydreaming he looked at her.

"Should they ask, being nosy neighbours, we need to establish how we actually met. Where and when you fell for me, where you proposed…"

_I fell for you the last time, Susan, I just haven't proposed yet._ He nodded, stirring the sugar he had added through his tea. "Good thinking."

"I know, I'm not your average blonde," she quipped.

_God, no, far from it._ "I wouldn't settle for anything less."

"How about: we met through friends?"

"Could be, how about through work?"

"What work?"

"Real estate. You were from a concurrent and stormed into my office mistakably, thinking you were fuming to a colleague that pulled you a trick." His eyes sparkled with joy. "You made a lasting impression." Sue laughed with his remark. "Conman's trick: Always stick as close to the truth as possible; that way you'll never be found out." She nodded, "okay, I mistook you for someone else. You just happened to be there that day."

"I should add you look hot whenever you're fumed."

"Jack!" she swatted him, "we're trying to make our cover work here, cooperate."

"SORRY," he said with that famous boyish grin. "You intrigued me and one thing led to another…"

"You proposed where?" _I could've sworn you did just a while ago_, she added. _And I accepted, wholeheartedly._

"I let you bid on an auction, a foreclosure from my office and when you went there for a viewing the keys I provided you with didn't fit the locks. You called me about it and I came by to take a look, supposedly helpful."

"Okay, then what?" A smile began to curl her lips.

"I looked at the key you had and I said it had been the wrong one. It fitted to a lovely tea house that stood in the back garden, you hesitantly opened it, already feeling it wasn't just a coincidence and you found an envelope on the table there that said 'will you marry me Sue?'." He smiled, "and then I came up with the brilliant line: that key has opened my heart for you and welcomed you in." He looked pretty smugly, "what'd you say?"

"I love it," she said, smiling. "Sentimental, but romantic as well…"

"You think you'd fall for it?" He grinned over the rim of his cup.

_I'd fall for any way you would propose,_ she thought and smiled. "Oh definitely."

"Good…" He paused to finish his cup. "What else should we think of now?"

"How come we bought the house and they likely never saw us visiting ever. There's a good chance they, or one of the neighbours, would have had a guardian eye over the premises and checking out who came and went."

"Smart," he said. "You're truly beauty and brains. So, what's our excuse?"

"We're both real estate brokers, we know what's on the market. We knew gold when we saw it coming by in office and in joint decision we decided to buy 'off the page'."

"That could work."

"Of course it could work, I invented it. Just like your proposal invention wasn't farfetched, this isn't as well." She held her cup out for a refill. "Right now, I work more house-based instead of from the office. Busy with the move and everything." Halfway her lips she halted her steaming cup of tea. "What about the surveillance equipment, phones?"

"Already installed, CapTel, TTY, cameras. Oh and the house has been furnished as well."

"I hope the Bureau's standard of appropriate and tasteful meets ours."

"Correction, yours."

"Nevertheless, have you seen it?"

"How could I? I haven't been near yet. But from earlier experience I think they did a pretty fair job of combining antique with modern. After all, we have to tempt as well."

"Have our neighbour burgle our place?" She drew a face. "I don't know if that's the neighbourhood I want to live in." She paused deliberately. "Or the one I'd like to see our children grow up in…"

He almost had a fit, just as he took a sip; she had been waiting for him to when she made the remark. He barely managed to hold the tea back and place the cup safely down. "What?!"

She smiled a mischievous smile. "Have you forgot? We discussed it nevertheless, once we had found a place to settle down, we'd have children. Two at least."

"I eh, I am afraid that discussion seems to be missing…." He was shocked with her comment, the smug smile plastered on her face made it clear she was only teasing but that didn't upset him as much as the sudden realisation that it was indeed something he wanted to have with her, someday. _If only you knew._

"I'll blame the stress of moving over for it, once." She waved her fingers admonishingly to Jack, her lips pursed but a joyful light sparkling in her eyes. "Just don't do it again."

"That would likely be the reason," he said, smiling a still somewhat baffled smile. "And I won't. Forget it, I mean."

"Good." She finished her tea. "How about we continue packing?"

"Sounds like a good idea."

Following her as she climbed the stairs enabled him a perfect view of the woman he so madly loved but was afraid to come close to, feeling she didn't reciprocate his feelings, some of her statements and remarks only confirmed what he thought. Yet, and that brought him off balance, there had been several moments where he thought something was different and he saw something in her eyes that reflected more than he dared to think. At those moments, he could be convinced she'd felt more for him than she did show. But he blamed wishful thinking for it, dismissing many a thought and impression.

When she had finally got everything she wanted to take with her, and he had loaded everything in his car she walked through her bedroom one more last time, alone. Letting her hand slide over the _dressoir_, her bed, feeling the soft sheets and the wood as if she would be here for the last time and she started a whole new life elsewhere. She absent-mindedly felt for the ring on her finger and a soft tender smile broke through. Somewhere, she mused, it wasn't that far from the truth. The moment she would leave her house and step into the car with the man that waited downstairs, she would leave the safe environment of a life she knew. Where she didn't always feel stellar about the way it turned out, but at least offering some kind of shelter and steady ground, no matter how frustrating emotionally.

When she would close the door behind her, she would leave behind that safe life and venture out into something where she couldn't foresee where it would lead to. Exciting and thrilling but downright scary as well. But she had come so far, she couldn't back down anymore. She took a deep breath before she descended the stairs and would meet him. _You can do this, Sue_.

His smile was broad and warm as she came down, picking up her purse, keys and Levi's leash. "You ready for it?"

She nodded. "Ready as I'll ever be…"


	6. Chapter 6

**A**sk about your neighbours, then buy the house

**Jewish Proverb**

**IV**

**H**ow much value can one attribute to something when the _condition sine qua non_ is constructed, in a sense even fake? As a paradox, she felt as if she came home when she first set foot in their new house, fully aware of the absurdity of it. A fake loving marriage that at least on her part wasn't that fake, harbouring the feelings she had for him; their matrimonial status a constructed phenomenon that she was unable to valid in any way. 'Their' house untrue as well. Yet, like pieces of a jigsaw, everything matched and piece by piece a picture was made that painted precisely what she wanted to have. At some day.

Sue fell in love with the house the moment her eyes caught the Ionian columns that carried the awning mimicking an ancient Greek _architrave_, their grey-white sleek marble appearance contrasting the soft carnelian-red brickwork and white wooden windows. From the ceiling of the awning hung a single glass and cast iron chandelier that lighted the main entrance. Two meticulously manicured firs guarded the steps that led to the door, their smooth-trimmed foliage stood out against the classic grooved _cannelures_ that marked the Greek-Ionian style columns as well as the curled _volute_ that supported the roof.

Aspen, oaks and maples decorated the street. Their ancient crowns sheltering, giving the surroundings a grand atmosphere as the first colours of autumn boldly surfaced amidst the green shades of the trees. As they drove through the street that would become their home for the next time Sue couldn't do anything else but admire the magnificent houses that aligned the way until she gasped when their house came into view. Jack turned slightly, a smile on his face, wanting to see admiration and a whole palette of emotions on her attractive features.

"You like it?"

"Like it? I _love_ it…" she said, a broad smile on her face, "if only one day I could actually be living in a house like this."

"Well, you cannot foresee the future, but all I know is that we _now_ live in one. I figured that we're not that bad equipped after all."

"This must cost a fortune."

"Uncle Sam is a wealthy man."

"Apparently." They halted on the white pebbled sweep. "I still can't believe it."

"Believe what?"

"We're here and pretending this is just ours. Like we're fortunate."

"We are," he said, "fortunate." _I am most fortunate, to have you near me._ Once out of the car she slowly climbed the limestone steps that led to the entrance. Near the door she halted and turned, seeing him close behind her. Her halting had him surprised and he ran into her. His body suddenly pressing against hers, she reacted surprised and instinctively she backed away only to find her back already rested against the wood of the front door effectively trapping her.

Like bushfire swept up by a strong sea breeze, his touch revved her whole system. Her breath caught halfway, she felt the electricity of his body pressing against hers streaming through her veins. His breath stroked the side of her of cheek and she cautiously let her eyes climb upward to meet his brown eyes that seemed to be smouldering with the same intensity as she felt. Out of instinct his hand reached up and stroked back a strand of her hair that had fallen over her face, his lips maddeningly close to her face. She slightly parted her lips, as she was about to close her eyes revelling in his touch when he suddenly broke contact.

She felt the deep disappointed moan she uttered before she could hold it back. _Why…_

"I, eh…" he began and he fuddled a bit with his keys as he looked up again. "I didn't see you stopping." He smiled apologetically.

"The door was closed, I could hardly have ran through it now could I?" It came out more harsh than she actually would've wanted, but her frustration surfaced over yet another bodged close encounter and seeped through before she was able to bite her tongue. "I'm sorry…"

She stepped over the threshold into the marble-tiled hall and part of her anger disappeared as she took in the house's interior. A majestically curved stairway, cardinal-red tapestry on the steps, led to the upper levels. The cognac brown wooden rails elegantly followed the lines of a Venetian glass chandelier that hung centred in the hall. From the hall she could see the white soft carpet that lay on the parquet floor of the main living room extending beyond view.

He followed her inside, inwardly cursing his cold feet when she was so dazzlingly nearby and he almost gave in to what he wanted most. His hand pushing a bang of her hair behind her ear and he had been a millisecond away from kissing her. It might as well have been a century, he thought, for he didn't pursue. _I'm a coward, it's official._

Just closing the front door behind him Sue came back into the hall, a broad smile of disbelief on her face. "Have you seen the sheer _size_ of that dining room? It's bigger than my whole place _combined_!" She let her fingers trail over the smooth-polished reddish-brown cherry-wood Japanese cupboard that decorated the passage between kitchen and living room. "Oh my…" she stopped to take a closer look at a large plate of white porcelain with blue imprints and figures that lay on the large dining table. Carefully she picked it up and turned it to look on the bottom. Very carefully she placed it back on the cognac-coloured wood. "This is genuine Delfts, Jack…"

"Expensive I take it."

"More than that, wreck it and you'll be working a few years for nothing."

"We better not wreck it then."

"Preferably not."

She marvelled at the impeccable white carpet that lay before the Chesterfield leather sofas. A glass-plated low table was placed in the centre that through its glass let the magnificent softness of the fabric non-obscured. "It's so pristine I barely dare to touch it, let alone walk over it," she said. She turned a little to face him. "That means shoes off for you as well, Hudson."

"DO WHAT WILL QQ" he said as she squatted near the corner of the carpet, his brows furred and a quizzed expression on his lips. She lifted the corner of the carpet. "LOOK (under), BRAND KNOW WANT," she said. Her eyes grew a little and she put it down. "fs. AUBUSSON."

"fs. AUBUSSON QQ," he repeated, unsure. She nodded. "EXPENSIVE." She got up again, a smile on her lips, "that means your socks have to be clean as well."

"I didn't know you knew antiques."

"I did some homework last night," Sue responded. "Whoever decorated this house has got style and taste. _My_ style and taste…"

"It's Bureau work."

"Then I need to have a word or two with the property master of whatever department handles this kind of things. Cut a deal, I know a good place for one or two items."

"They're all listed, I don't think there's much to bargain for."

"Well, maybe he's willing to after a date, or two."

"Hey, you're a married woman, remember?"

"A _fake_ marriage…" She paused to gauge his reaction. In the second before he shied his eyes down she could see something in them that she could only label as hurt. "Unfortunately," she thought she saw his lips form in the reflection of the glass doors of the wine cabinet as he looked away. "What did you say?" she asked, her voice a lot more gentle than accompanied the sharp remark earlier.

"Never mind," he said. "I'll get your gear out of the car."

Contemplating over what she just witnessed she stood for a moment in the living room, seeing through the windows how he walked down the path over the lawn to their car. She bit her lower lip and absently ruffled Levi's fur as he sat down next to her.

Outside he clenched his fists for a moment before he proceeded to open the boot of the car and retrieve Sue's belongings. Her remark hurt, and she knew it, he was sure of it. _Damned_, he thought. He couldn't really believe that Sue, whom he held to be soft-natured, was capable of such a deliberately hurtful remark. But then again, she just had. _It doesn't get more sobering than that._ He took out a suitcase and placed it on the ground near the rear bumper. He was about to pick out another when he heard a movement behind him.

"Well, hello there," a medium-height man with blonde hair whom he immediately recognised as Oscar Beckett said as he held out his hand. Jack smiled and shook his hand. "Jack Hudson."

"Oscar Beckett," he said, and his British pronunciation was unmistakable. "I saw you arriving and I could not pass the opportunity to say hello and welcome you into our neighbourhood."

"It's appreciated Mr. Beckett."

"Oh, away with the formality, just Oscar will do." Behind black-lined spectacles a pair of friendly light grey eyes mustered him with interest. "That is, if you want to be on familiar names as well."

Jack smiled. "Sure, will do, Oscar."

"Lovely," he said. "Need a hand with anything?"

"It's just these few suitcases…" He gestured at the house. "We had the rest already moved in earlier. Just nuts and bolts really."

"Yes, we saw the lorries come and go. You really bought a splendid house."

"We fell in love with it the moment we saw it," Jack said as he closed the boot-lid. Oscar retrieved a small cigar from the breast pocket of his blue Spencer and offered Jack. "No thanks, I don't smoke."

"Ah, a wise man," he said as he took a matchbook and lit one, he puffed a few small clouds. "My one vice, I'm afraid. But Tamsin has me expelled for it nonetheless." He shook out the burning match and put it back in the matchbook. "Tamsin, as you most rightfully must assume, is my darling spouse. I love her more than life, but I have to smoke outside despite my best pleas for mercy."

"Lucky for me I don't smoke, or I'd face the same."

"_Nil nequit amor_, my friend. Love overcomes all." Oscar contentedly puffed away a few clouds of smoke, hands shoved in the pockets of his trousers. "Or so they say anyway."

Jack laughed, feeling strangely at ease with the man he was sat about to be spying upon. Oscar Beckett was anything but a standard alleged felon he had encountered in earlier cases. In his fifties, black trousers, a white blouse with a blue Spencer on top, he resembled more of a retired banker than an art thief or fencer. "Why don't you come in? You haven't met my wife, Sue yet."

"Splendid, I'll just finish this delightful sin first." He puffed away some more and took the small remnant from his lips and deposited it in a nearby litter bin. Oscar insisted on helping out so Jack provided him with a bag as they climbed the steps to the house.

"Just put the bag down there in the corner, Sue knows where it should go," Jack said as he closed the door behind Oscar. As inconspicuous as he could he observed the man's motions and interest to see if the lavish interior sparked something. His eyes grew lively with joy and almost excited Oscar looked round. He turned round to Jack. "God bless that wife of yours for her immaculate taste. I do assume it's her hand in this I'm seeing."

"Yeah, her taste and part of my wallet." Jack winked amicably.

"Small offers, great benefits I always say." Just then Sue emerged from the living room holding a bottle of Heidsieck Bluetop Monopole and a card, a smile on her face. She stopped in her tracks as she saw Oscar, but then her smile broadened. "Hello.."

"Oscar, I'd like you to meet Sue, my wife," Jack said and Oscar shook her hand with a small bow. "Sue, this is Oscar Beckett, from next door."

"What a surprise Mr. Beckett, you came to welcome us?"

"As I already pleaded to your husband, Oscar is fine." He smiled, "I couldn't contain my curiosity when I saw your saloon standing on the sweep and then I met Jack who invited me in."

"Welcome," Sue said, she had had more trouble in following what he said than she usually had with others. His lips moved different than most speakers, but his use of words suggested to her he might be British. "Are you perhaps British, Oscar?"

"Hard to get around," he said.

"I figured that since you pronounce words differently than I'm used to."

"Well, Oscar Wilde agreed we had many things in common with Americans, except of course the language." He smiled, "and it didn't fell on deaf ears."

Sue smiled, "well, actually it did." His confused look invited her to inform him more. "ME DEAF," she said, "I'm Deaf."

"What?" His puzzled eyes followed her movements. He looked up from her hands to see her smiling friendly. "I'm Deaf," Sue said, "I can't hear." She signed simultaneously.

Then it dawned him and he was visibly upset. "I'm sorry, I…had no idea." He squinted his eyes. "But you speak and you know what I said…"

Sue nodded. "I read lips, that way I can put together, more or less, what is said. But Jack and I use American Sign Language often rather than speech. It's less straining for me."

"Most remarkable."

"Thank you."

"No really, I'm impressed, I never would have guessed." He nodded, more at ease and in his eyes she read genuine awe. "Then you must meet Tamsin, my wife, a late aunt of her was deaf and she knows some sign language as well. You should get along."

Sue smiled. "That, would be British Sign Language I guess?"

"She was from Strathclyde, so yes I assume."

"BSL is completely different from ASL I'm afraid. There's no universal Sign Language. It would be like speaking Chinese to a Russian."

"Or British to an American," he laughed.

"Touché," Sue said and smiled. "Well, now you're here, would you like to join us?" She took the bottle of Champagne and held it up a little. "I was about to say to Jack that our colleagues left us this bottle as a welcome to our new house."

"Very kind, Sue, but that's more prone to private celebration. Let me instead invite you to have an evening supper tomorrow with Tamsin and I, in our house."

"That's very kind."

"Say, eight o'clock?"

Jack exchanged a few glances with Sue, "Eight sounds good, we'll be there. Thank Tamsin in advance for us will you?"

"Will do," Oscar said as he walked back to the front door, just before he reached it he turned to look at Sue. "I nearly forgot to compliment your style and taste in decoration."

"THANK YOU," she said. "That's 'thank you' isn't it?" Oscar said, "I've seen it somewhere."

"Yes it is." Sue seemed genuinely touched he knew and smiled warmly. "Thanks for dropping by."

After Oscar left she held up the bottle once again, her head slightly cocked an amused smile on her lips. "Well, what'ya say we open this one to celebrate."

Inwardly he still had to digest her comments earlier and celebration over something like this seemed a bit wry, but her lively expression let that dark acid cloud that encircled his heart disappear like the sun would. _The light of my life_, he mused, _but out of reach._ "Why not, it is after all a new home to both of us." He followed her towards to living room. "What was on that card you had earlier?" She gave it to him, "you might want to read it yourself as well." She opened the cupboard to retrieve two _flûtes_, and with a modest 'pop' the cork was undone and she poured the light-golden liquid in the glasses. Countless bubbles clung to the glass and spiralled to the surface like tiny pearls. She handed him his glass.

"To Jack and Sue, a small gift to truly welcome you in your new house, to let it become your new home and that a whole new life may blossom soon. Love, the team," he read aloud. He especially was affected by the last line. _Who knows._ He smiled warmly at the gracious blonde that stood opposite him as she raised her glass. "To a new successful end," she said.

"To us," he reciprocated. She shied her eyes down for a fraction of a second as her smile grew in intensity. "To us," she said and with a high-pitched clear A-sharp sound glass met glass as they toasted and let the Champagne invade their senses with a dry, semi-sour palette of apples, a hint of vanillin and the sweetness of white grapes.

She put down her glass and took the card he had put down on the table to read the message again. The hand-writing was unmistakably Lucy's and the last line was put down as her own input and wish that something finally would change for the better for the both of them. She already regretted lashing out at him, if she could take back what she said she would but she knew she couldn't. Something in his demeanour told her she had hit either home, or at least very close to it, when he had uttered something she couldn't explain other than rooted in regret on her comment about their fake partnership. That, plus his explicit toast made that something deep in her was stirred that closely resembled the warm feeling she got when he had cautiously and tenderly placed the rings on her finger. The rings he had kept ever since their first mission. _Could I be wrong about him?_ she thought. And for the first time in a while the impulse to dismiss it was absent.

"That was such a sweet thing to say," she said and smiled warmly. His eyes fixed back on her and in those enchanting deep dark pools she could see appreciation. "I can be sweet."

"I know," she said, "I've been on the receiving side quite a few times." She let her eyes travel over the short black hair, those magnificent brows and lashes that could swoon every woman, over his strong cheek and jaw to those sweet-tasting lips of him she still vividly remembered after their kiss at Callahan and Merced. "I'm sorry for what I said earlier."

"It's okay," he said. She shook her head, her hand reached out for his and she gently squeezed it as she felt the electrical touch simmering through her veins. "No, it's not. I didn't mean to hurt you." She smiled tenderly, absent-mindedly touching the ring on her finger after she let her thumb softly caress his palm. "I'm a lucky woman to be married to you."

"I'm a lucky man to have you," he said. "I'll put your bags upstairs for you to unpack." He turned slightly when he took the first steps to see she stood halfway the threshold holding her glass against her chest, looking at him, a mysterious and enchanting absent expression on her face. He made it up the stairs with ease, suddenly feeling elation seeping into his system he had just been witness of the opening to something more. _Could I have misjudged her?_ The possibility didn't seem so far-fetched than it had done a while ago as he still felt the warm touch of her hand on his. When her thumb tenderly brushed his skin he almost couldn't believe what he was feeling, but now, still feeling it, he realised that there was more to her than he originally thought could be. _May a whole new life blossom…_He smiled. _Maybe it could._


	7. Chapter 7

_**D**er du von dem Himmel bist,_  
_Alles Leid und Schmerzen stillest,_  
_Den, der doppelt elend ist,_  
_Doppelt mit Erquickung füllest;_  
_Ach, ich bin des Treibens müde!_  
_Was soll all der Schmerz und Lust?_

_Süßer Friede, _

_Komm, ach komm in meine Brust!_

_(__**T**__hou that from the heavens art,_  
_Every pain and sorrow stillest,_  
_And the doubly wretched heart_  
_Doubly with refreshment fillest,_  
_I am weary with contending!_  
_Why this rapture and unrest?_  
_Peace descending_  
_Come ah, come into my breast!__)_

**Goethe**_, Wanderers Nachtlied I,_ 1776

**V**

**S**o dazzlingly close by and yet still so far away from touch, he should have known since their last assignment how cruel reality could play its games. He was living the life he wanted so dearly, having the woman that featured in his dreams and thoughts around in a setting that even the liveliest of imagination couldn't picture better. Except for that one three-syllable word that spoiled the sweetness with its ubiquitous bitter tone: assignment.

Like in the Dessa-case, the idyll lasted up until nightfall as they separated, each in their own bedroom. Lights on in one, off in the other to avoid suspicion. It fell hard on his already aching heart to enter the darkness of his realm that somehow symbolised the state of things between them to him. In the well-lit corridor they said goodnight, both feeling awkward and he felt the sharp pain of hurt sear through him as the light touched her blonde hair, dying it deep golden, sharply drawing the contours of her body and letting her beautiful hazel eyes shimmer like diamonds. _The light of my life_, he mused as he watched her enter her room and with a last smile closing the door.

That last smile couldn't leave his mind for the hours to come as he lay awake in the darkness of him room. A kind, gentle and even loving smile that mixed with touches of sorrow and longing in an addicting cocktail that left his mind in turmoil like an autumn tempest. The soft sheets of his bed seemed to have lost its smoothness and bore resemblance to sanding-paper and he felt ill at ease. Halfway through the night he couldn't contain himself anymore as he saw her door ajar when he came back from the bathroom, a very soft light peeked through the opening beckoning him to come closer. Cautiously he opened the door a little further to see if she was okay, but from the moment his eyes fell on the peaceful figure that lay just a few feet away from him he was lost forever.

She was more beautiful than he had dared to imagine, her hair framed around her face over the pillows like a blonde waterfall cascading over the rocks. The peaceful expression on her sleeping features almost angelic. His heart leapt from sheer admiration and longing as he progressed further into her room. Levi, lying on the carpet before the bed, heaved his head and began waggling his tail in anticipation of his caress. He gently stroked the dog's fur as he bid him to stay put and not disturb the idyll. The golden retriever lay down his head again and his dark eyes followed his moves. Part of the sheets she lay under had slid off and very cautious he draped them back over her sleeping figure, careful not to stir her.

The steady rhythm of her breathing, her rising and falling chest where the gold crucifix she wore around her neck was partly visible, he let his sight linger on the precious long eyelashes that met the same dazzling colour as her hair and encircled a set of the most precious and beautiful eyes he had ever seen. Eyes that through their joy wonderfully improved his mood, that could enchant him when she was day-dreaming and that with the sparkling fire in them could warm him to the depths of his soul. Eyes that crowned the most beautiful face of the most breathtaking woman he had ever come across and who had stolen his heart unconditionally.

His very heart was beating faster as he, overcome by a willpower stronger than his reason could prevent, reached out and stroked back a strand of her hair and let his thumb tenderly caress her cheek. "You have no idea what you're doing to me, Susan Thomas," he said, even though he knew she could never hear it. "I never believed in finding 'The One'." He had squatted next to her bedside and prayed there was any way that despite her deafness she'd hear him subconsciously as he declared his love for her. "Until I met you…"

She stirred a little and the soft moan he heard her utter only contributed to the magic he felt happening as he kept watching her, occasionally unable to hold back and touch her hair. "I love you, Susan, if only I was capable of telling you when you're awake…"

For a second he was certain that he might actually have to do it as she turned her head a little and twisted under her sheets, but she didn't open her eyes. He smiled tenderly as he got up and leaned over. He closed his eyes as he placed a soft tender kiss on her temple. _This time I won't let you drive away like before without you knowing my heart is yours._ He turned one more time when he was about to close the door. Back in the same room that at first breathed disconsolateness he had no trouble falling asleep this time.

She had woken up with ease in the new surroundings and felt elated, whether it had been the pleasant dreams she had dreamed she wasn't sure but the happy feeling was unmistakable. Immensely looking forward to be able to greet the man of her dreams in the morning she descended the stairs to the corridor that led to the kitchen. And was not disappointed when she entered the kitchen to find him standing with his back to her. She smiled. "Good morning."

He turned round and a smile appeared on his wildly attractive face. "Good morning." He hadn't shaved yet and that raw appearance made him irresistible and she was pretty sure he had done that on purpose. She didn't mind. As she gratefully accepted the cup of tea he handed her she sat down at the kitchen table and watched him. Something had changed overnight, she felt different and could sense there had been a change in his demeanour as well. He sat down opposite her. "Sleep well?"

She nodded holding the warm cup with both hands as she softly blew the steaming liquid to cool down enough to drink. "The bed is heavenly. If there's anything that I need to do it's to get this one back home. Mine resembles a wooden plate compared to this one." She took a sip of her tea. "And you?"

"Yeah," he said. _At least part of the night I slept good_. "And I've been thinking."

"Have you now?" she teased. He smiled, "I have, the moments are scarce but occasionally I do. Last night it struck me that my bedroom offers a good view of the Beckett's place, we could monitor his activities from there."

"Your bedroom, huh?" she said, "isn't that convenient…"

"Very convenient."

"Why not mine?"

"The same trees that captured your imagination also inconveniently block the view to their house. You could study birdlife but not Oscar's business."

"And how would you know my bedroom's unsuitable? You haven't sneaked in have you?" she laughed. He casually shrugged, his eyes expressing joy and something more. "I might have." It could have been just another quip, but that light that flickered in his dark eyes told her perhaps he was telling the truth. She suddenly began to wonder if that might have something to do with the pleasant night she had had that seamlessly flowed into the present morning. "You wouldn't…."

He just took a sip of his coffee and said nothing, but the smile on his lips was tantalising.

_Okay, playful mood here…_ "And did you enjoy it?" she bit her lower lip in that mesmerising way, playfully. "The scenery, I mean?"

"Which one?" She felt how her cheeks began to glow in what would undoubtedly be a nice crimson colouring. His breath halted, she looked so dazzlingly beautiful whenever she was flushed. "Red suits you," he said enjoying to see her like this, it added adorable to the long-list of compliments he kept of her.

"Jack…" her face flushed, she smiled, "…keep going and my face will burn."

"Exactly my plan."

"Oh really? I had no idea." She took a bite of her toast. "You still haven't answered my original question." She let her gaze linger on him, as she folded both hands under her chin and rested on them. _Reap what you sow, Hudson_. "Well?"

She had him cornered, and he knew it. He rubbed his brow, smiling. "I eh…" He looked into that pair of hazel eyes, smouldering with joy, and he felt his mind already starting to lose coherence under her gaze. "I did enjoy the scenery. Although I favoured one."

"Care to share?"

"I'll leave that up to your imagination."

She bit her lower lip still resting her chin on her hands, and squinted a little. "I have a very lively imagination," she said, "but I have to hear you say it first." _I dare you, come forward this time…_

"Say of sign?" He smiled his trademark smile.

"Jack…"

He couldn't possibly stall an answer, he knew. "At a certain point my eyes caught a most breathtaking view, which was definitely feminine in nature."

She began to smile, tilting her head somewhat, encouraging him to go on. "It took me a few seconds to realise that the beauty in that bed was none other than my wife." He opened his mouth to speak again but frowned and with an apologetic smile he retrieved his cell phone. _Damned._ He stared at the digits, Bobby. _Great timing, mate_. "Can I call you back?" He listened for the response, smiling at Sue. "Okay, will do, I'll call."

"SORRY," he said, "ns. BOBBY CALL"

"IMPORTANT?"

_Nowhere near as important as you. _He shook his head, "minor technicality. He'll live."

She nodded. "And just when did all that happen? That I distracted you?"

He smiled. "Not just then, you do it all the time. I'm easily distracted I guess." He leaned back in his chair. "Last night, when I couldn't sleep."

Feeling her cheeks warming just a little, as soon as she realised he wasn't joking. _You have been there, not just in my dreams…_ "Thank you," she said.

"For what?"

"For whatever you did or said that made me feel so wonderful this morning."

All through the day, she kept that wonderful feeling wheels had been set in motion that hadn't begun turning yesterday. His confession during their breakfast had touched her, and gave an explanation of why she had such a pleasant night. As evening dawned, the dinner appointment with the Becketts had to be dealt with and she hailed her decision to bring her extensive wardrobe with her. Standing in front of the closet she let her eyes wander over the clothes, sorting out, combining, dismissing. Meeting Oscar, she was aware their dinner would be informal, but that didn't mean she didn't have to dress to impress. Not them anyway, she thought and smiled.

After many tries she had found what she was after, informal but classy, guaranteed to 'breathe' Kalorama as well as ensure he would only have eyes for her. A slim-tailored, three-quarter sleeve, buff-coloured jacket with standing collar contrasted the dark-blue tight fitting jeans she wore with brown leather Stuart Weitzman knee boots over it. A fine gold-buckled matching leather belt casually accentuated her hips, with the upper buttons left open, her fine necklace was crowing her bare neck. She draped a champagne rugged knitted shawl over her shoulders, letting the edges fall over, her golden hair curling over it in long waves she had accomplished after tedious care. Pleased with herself as she checked her appearance in the mirror once again, she picked her purse from the dressoir and headed downstairs.

"Hey," she smiled as soon as she saw him.

"Hey," he barely managed to utter. His stomach did flip-flops when she walked in, his heart sped up and he couldn't help but stare. She looked devastatingly beautiful. "What do you think?" She spun round before him, her hair dancing with the motion, like fluid gold flowing over her shoulders, curling up. His breath caught, the moment he could tear himself away from that scene and met her eyes that shone like diamonds. The subtle eyeliner and mascara she applied drew all attention to them and he found himself lost in the depths once again. "You're beautiful."

She smiled with his remark, a light crimson on her cheeks as she shied her eyes down for a second. "Thank you." She felt the familiar butterflies in her stomach as she mustered his dark denims, powder-blue woollen Ralph Lauren Polo cardigan over a white blouse. The dark shadow of his evening-bearded jaw matched the dark pools of his eyes and made him simply irresistible. _Wow…_

"I tried my best in the looks department," he said and began to smile, "but I should've known I could never beat you."

"You look perfect, beautiful." She smiled tenderly. "Shall we go?"

She waited as he closed the door behind them, and smiled as she saw him assuring Levi they'd be back later; whose pleading eyes demanded explanation why he was left behind. Her breath caught as his hand touched the small of her back as he escorted her down the steps. She looked down when she felt his hand touching hers and their fingers intertwined, his touch electrical. She looked up in his eyes, and found no trace of awkwardness just that fiery glimmer that left her mesmerised earlier. _Oh god, yes…_

He tugged her a little closer as they walked to the Beckett residence. "What's that perfume you're wearing?" he asked. She bit her lip, smiling a tad bit unsure. "I eh, am not wearing one…" She could've named any brand, he would've believed it, he thought, but he never expected that she was naturally like this, her scent enchanting, her touch reviving, her soft voice all poising his soul. He desperately wanted to press his nose in that lusciously cascading hair, inhaling her scent, feeling the softness caress his skin. And most of all he longed to kiss those slightly moist lips of her that nearly drove him crazy.

Unfortunately, they had already arrived at Oscar's doorstep and shortly after, he opened the door and welcomed them in. "Do come in, and may I compliment your outfit Sue?"

She stroked back a strand of hair behind her ear, smiling. "That's very kind, Oscar, thank you." He escorted them to the living room. "Anything to drink while we wait, an appetiser so to speak?"

"Dry white wine, if you have," Sue said. Oscar smiled, "certainly, Jack?"

"She's the wine expert, I'll have what she has."

"Excellent." He walked over to a most beautiful chestnut Louis XIV cabinet and retrieved the glasses. "Please, take a look round the place while I go and collect the wine. Make yourselves at home." He left them alone.

"cl. R-R (room) LOOK AROUND, FURNITURE EXPENSIVE." Jack knew speaking would instantly give them away, they couldn't risk being overheard. Sue nodded. "ANTIQUE ALL. YOU THINK STEAL FINISH?"

He shook his head. "fs. OSCAR, SMART HIM. PUT HERE POLICE US KNOW SOON." Sue held her right hand in a 'Y', palm facing left as she motioned her hand back and forth to him twice. "ME AGREE."

"I managed to retrieve a most subtle 2002 Château Valmy, a French winter wine, Muscat, deliciously fragile. I think you'll enjoy." Oscar placed the bottle on the table and peeled off the grey lead cap to uncork it. "I begged Tamsin to leave the kitchen be and join us, she should be here any second." The glass he handed her nearly seemed to float in the air, weighing just about nothing except for the lemon-chiffon wine it held. The Austrian manufacturers of the Riedel glass she held had delivered impeccable craftsmanship, it let the bouquet of the wine fully blossom and gave the fluid a crystal shine at the same time. Soft sweet melon-tones mixed with a remarkably subtle hearty afterglow as she let the wine dazzle her senses. "A truly wonderful entrée isn't it?"

She was about to respond when a gracious brunette entered the living room. Her hair in a fashionable knot with a few curls framing her friendly face, a black two-piece Chiffon dress, Sue judged her to be mid-forty. "I am truly sorry I'm this late, things in the kitchen best not unattended I'm afraid," she said as she held out her hand and shook theirs. "Tamsin. Welcome, I can see Oscar has already lulled you into trying his extensive wine collection."

Lively grey-green eyes mustered her and Jack approvingly. "I hope the lighting is sufficient?"

Sue smiled. Oscar already mentioned she had a Deaf aunt in the UK, her remark confirmed that. "Thank you for asking, Tamsin. It is," she turned a little to face her better. "I heard you had an aunt who was Deaf?" Oscar invited them to take a seat as he provided his wife with a glass as well.

"Yes, aunt Martha, she was from Strathclyde, she passed away ten years ago. Measles in her toddler's years left her deaf. I loved to be with her, she was funny and witty." Tamsin watched Sue with interest. "You must be reading lips…"

Sue nodded. "Jack and I sign a lot, it's less straining."

"I can imagine, dear. Martha would have a splitting headache often, she read lips as well."

"Same here." She smiled a tender smile the moment she saw Jack's eyes that were focused on her grew soft with compassion.

"I'm afraid my signing has become less fluent through the years, and it's not ASL as well." The brunette smiled an apologetic smile. "Your pronunciation is immaculate," Sue said, "which makes it easier for me to translate."

"Thank you, who'd known I would be complimented for my English by an American?" They laughed. "So," she said, "how did you meet? I take it you're not Deaf?"

Jack shook his head. "That's quite a story."

"Pray, do tell."

"We're both in the real estate business, different firms, duelling constantly as you can imagine. Anyway, at a blessed day Sue stormed into my office, fuming."

"Fuming?"

"Yes, one of my colleagues had pulled her a trick. She needed to vent and I was happening to be there," he smiled warmly at her. "I mistook him for that colleague of him," she added.

"How come?" Tamsin took a sip of her drink, an amused smile on her lips.

"Jonathan, the culprit, lend me his office for that day because my computer was being upgraded by company ICT. She never met me, nor Jonathan in person. So, rightfully, she thought I was Jonathan and began fuming how I pulled a very low trick only because she was a woman."

Sue smiled. "Halfway through I noticed he was enjoying the scene rather than feeling concerned, and that made me even more angry."

"I couldn't help noticing how pretty she was, especially when she was tempered," Jack laughed and saw how a crimson shade coloured her features.

"I can imagine," Oscar said.

"Understandably," Jack reciprocated and smiled a warm smile at Sue. Tamsin watched their interaction with interest. "I can see he probably used that same smile to put you off course…"

She nodded, still a slight warm feeling on her cheeks. "He did, and it worked."

"I said she probably was looking for Jonathan, whose office I occupied and introduced myself. It was only then I noticed she had a dog with her and I grew curious. I caught up with her and we had lunch together where I found out she was Deaf."

"The rest, they say, is history," Sue said as she automatically felt for the ring on her finger. The warm metal reminded her of what it could be like. _Could have been_, she corrected herself. She smiled.

"Amazing," Oscar exclaimed, "truly extraordinary."

"You make a lovely match," Tamsin said, "it was bound to happen from what I can tell." She smiled at Sue. "It's your eyes, they show just how much in love you are. Yours as well, Jack. Truly wonderful to see. I wish my Oscar would, he only has eyes for antiques."

_If it's so obvious to her just why can't he see it?_ Her words touched her heart, and summed up precisely what she felt inside for the man sitting just three feet away. But then she remembered the electrifying touch of their entangled hands as he suddenly and boldly took the assignment a step further. She had felt how joy and longing shot through her, in a maddeningly enthralling high, each and every step she took suddenly feeling like she was walking on air, floating over ground as the warmth from his touch and body heated up her own like a stirred campfire. Fuelling her longing for eternity.

Oscar rolled his eyes. "Never mind her, she knows I love her more than life." He gestured around. "Though I do love antiques, I even do a little business in them as well. Time-consuming at times, I'm afraid." He put his glass down. "But I told Tamsin what an absolute exquisite taste Sue has in furnishing. It seems I have met my match."

"You're welcome to come over and see," Sue said.

"That would be lovely, sweetheart." She got up and invited to follow her to the preciously laid table. "Why won't you sit down, through all this chatting one would forget we had a supper ready to be served."

"I wouldn't," Oscar said. Tamsin looked at him sternly just before she would leave the room. "Oscar Beckett, behave yourself. Be a good host and escort them to the dining table, would you?"

They had a wonderfully informal dinner and time had passed unnoticed as the evening progressed and time had come to go home again for Levi's sake. The dog happily leapt from the hall outside as soon as she had opened the door. Temperatures had dropped and the shawl, although it was warm, couldn't replace a coat and Sue took a burgundy woollen Pea Coat and draped her shawl over the jacket. She turned round to find Jack standing close behind her. "You didn't think I would let my wife stroll in an unknown neighbourhood all alone at night, would you?" Her breath caught by his proximity and expression.

"I was hoping you'd say that," she smiled back, "I might grow afraid of passing squirrels." She inched a bit closer, her stomach doing the familiar flips as she neared him.

"Who knows, squirrels can be dangerous…" His eyes shone dark with something enthralling she almost dared to call desire. "So I heard…"

She blamed the wine for her sudden boldness when she tugged him a closer, her hand intertwining with his and she lured him outside. "Come."

The streetlights just managed to peek out under the crowns of the trees that formed an additional dark sky as the sheltering branches and foliage spanned the pavement on which they walked. The light touched Levi's golden fur as the dog trotted over the moist grass that glistened under the white beams of the illuminating lanterns. The lighting was insufficient for her to read lips as they walked down the street, but right at this moment, she didn't need to see him. She felt him. The crisp air revving her senses as the cold on her cheeks wonderfully collided with the warmth of his touching hand that with each step taken seemed to grow in intensity.

A gentle brush of wind toyed leafs around, the reddish and brown mixing with gold as new leafs meandered to the soil, falling out of nowhere it seemed until the first light of the lanterns caught them, providing them with the spotlight on Nature's stage as they fell and twirled. _There was only one thing left that would this near perfect evening complete_, she thought and looking to her left, letting the image of him sink in, for the first time in what seemed ages she had a feeling that it might not be that farfetched after all.

Not wanting to end the magic of their nightly wandering she stalled the moment they would reach the front door again. She fumbled with the keys, her heart pounding, not daring to look up to meet his eyes. But then she did, a soft smile on her lips and she reached out for him. "Can I ask you a favour?" She bit her lower lip and the light of the Chandelier that shone down upon her granted her eyes a diamond shine and highlighted every curve and line of the woman that had captured his heart and was now in mind-bogging near proximity.

"Anything…"

"Could you…" she began. _Be still my speeding heart…_ "…you were with me last night, weren't you?"

He dipped his head for a second, looking up again, smiling softly. He nodded.

"I, eh…" _You can do this…_ "…Could you do the same thing you did last night again?" She cautiously met his eyes, feeling vulnerable for asking, but if she judged tonight rightly this could be the moment they had been waiting for all this time.

For a few nerve-wrecking seconds he neither said nor did anything and for a sickening moment she thought she had made a horrible mistake until he slowly tilted his head and his lips in slow-motion inched closer to hers. The warm feeling she had flared up into a raging inferno as his lips tenderly touched hers, the touch enough to send all her senses in overdrive as waves of joy rippled down her spine and her heart nearly exploded with all the pent-up emotions that now reeled freely through her system and she parted her lips. His lips now fully covered her lips and through the mist in her rapidly clouding brain she registered how his hand cupped her chin, drawing her even closer to him.

Sweeter than the sweetest of honey, richer in flavour than the best rosewater, she was tasting heaven when their lips fully met; she let him begin an enthralling journey of feeling, longing and desire culminating in that tender touch that radiated heat throughout her body. Time was rendered unimportant and the outside world ceased to exist as everything fell away around her and she was just there with him, giving in to a need they had tortured themselves for so long with in their abstinence. It felt as if her hurting heart freed itself from the self-imposed cage and was finally free to feel and tune in to a song only they could hear as they became one through their kiss, swaying to a rhythm as old as the earth as the weight of the time gone by fell from her shoulders and she was able to float.

She closed her eyes and surrendered to her feelings as she was falling into the abyss.


	8. Chapter 8

**A** little fire is quickly trodden out; Which, being suffer'd, rivers cannot quench

**William Shakespeare,** _King Henry VI, Part III,_ 1590

**VI**

**A**t times it can be little things that can become like the proverbial watershed on a continent that forces a stream to choose a path that –once chosen- is irreversible; forces of nature prohibit. In theory that stream could forever surcease at the invisible line without going either way, but it never does, it would not be streaming, not live. Just like in life at a certain point, a choice has to be made, without knowing where the trail will end. Consciously, subconsciously we make choices that are as irreversible and will have known and unknown effects. Actions speak louder than words, the proverb will. While one may contribute more to words; and though it's true they have been capable of inspiring, gifting, destructing: against some physical gestures they can never hold, no matter how short, small, insignificant or in this case cogent.

How much hardship can one endure that is rendered obsolescent by the gratitude of just a single kiss? A musing she was only capable of answering very late at night as she lay on her bed wide-awake. Very much. As his lips had tenderly descended upon hers in that enthralling kiss, the rags of doubt, hardship and even pain were dispersed and gone were the times she could only long for something like that.

With each sensual caress of his tongue he managed to make her heart flutter with the notion she had chosen the right path when she accepted their new assignment despite her reservations. Stirring the fire that burned inside, her passion for him, with every second their magical bond lasted until it was forever imprinted on her soul.

Parting for much needed air they reluctantly broke contact. She still had her eyes closed, their dazzling journey not yet to an end within. She felt how he rested his forehead against hers and how his breath gently touched her chin. For what seemed ages they stood there, her hands seeking him to hold. It was only then she opened her eyes again and he was able to peek into the depth of them seeing the blaze he had ignited colouring her hazel eyes brightly.

"I eh…" he began but she silenced him by placing her finger on his lips. "Don't talk," she whispered as she tenderly lured him inside through the opened door. "Just hold me…" The more than sufficient lighting in the hall made her flushed appearance visible, her cheeks rosé with the mix of cold air and the warmth smouldering within, those moist lips that had begged him to kiss at last as she had formed the words of approval he sought to execute the plan he had had ever since he saw her peaceful sleeping figure last night.

"You're beautiful," he said as he pointed at her and his right hand -fingers spread in a 5-shape- circled in front of his face, closing into a flattened 'O' then moving his hand away from his face fingers spread again.

Sue dipped her head for a second feeling how his words made her knees go weak as she relived the moment earlier he let her feel just how much he meant those words. She smiled a joyous smile he had not seen often before as she looked up again, her bound heart now unbound as a journey had come to an end and a whole new one was starting. She gasped nevertheless as his hand changed, extending the pink, index-finger and thumb, palm facing left, thumb pointing at him. Forming his hand into a fist, thumb over the fingers, in an 'S', he immediately made the sign for 'GROW' and smiled tenderly. "ILY ns. SUE."

Literally silencing him by taking his hands she pulled him closer as her lips captured his in slow-motion, she wanted to taste him again and let her love be felt through her tender caress when he said the words she longed to see in her native language.

She rested her head against his but hold on to his hands. He looked down to see how her hand formed a drawn 'J' with her little finger across her heart as her other hand tenderly guided his hand to do the same and finally she pointed at him. His eyes met hers again. She smiled.

"(me) GIVE (you) NAME SIGN fs. JACK (that) ns JACK. FINISH LIFE ME ENTER YOU, NOW HEART ENTER ALSO."

He slowly repeated the sign she just taught him, the quintessential proof he belonged to her, had become part of her life as a name-sign could only be contributed to you by a Deaf. The form it took manifest of how much he meant to her. "THANK YOU," he said, feeling a lump forming in his throat as he kissed her hands. "GIFT BEAUTIFUL." With that simple sign she told a story that would need so many words, held so much emotions and feelings, longing and yet, through the beauty of Sign Language, was summarised by one single gesture.

"ILY ns. JACK." She smiled. "TIME ALL ME SURE (not) YOU LOVE ME. NOW-NIGHT SURE ME."

"ME SAME," he reciprocated, "ns. SUE, SORRY ME. TIME ALL TELL WANT ILY, SCARED TINY AGAIN AGAIN." He placed a soft kiss on her forehead. "ME WONDER HAPPEN WHAT TELL YOU TIME EARLY, SUPPOSE YOU HURT (not) QQ"

She sneaked her arms around his neck as she looked deep into his eyes. "I have you now, here, that's all that matters, don't start about the whats and ifs and just feel, just feel…" She placed her hand on his heart as she put his hand on hers. She smiled tenderly. "Feel that? That's all that matters…nothing else…"

A whole array of feelings and emotions battled for most of the night as she, unsuccessfully initially, tried to fall asleep. Acutely aware the situation of last night, whilst bearing the similarities, was set under completely different stars this night. Physically as well as emotionally exhausted they had chosen their own rooms once again, the only way to recuperate, knowing everything was different from now on as sleep gradually fought its way into her system.

"GOOD MORNING," she said as soon as he came in the kitchen rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. Barefooted, a light-grey T-shirt over a pair of denims that highlighted the tinted skin of his arms and face as well as it did nothing to obscure each line and curve of his upper body. Hair just modelled with some water, his chin unshaven he made her heart race and halted her breath, to a point she almost swooned like a High School teenager. He smiled seeing she beat him getting to the kitchen. "GOOD MORNING." He didn't disappoint her when he took her in his arms and his lips tenderly kissed hers. Her heart racing, the butterflies in her stomach twirling as the morning she envisioned many future mornings unfolded just like she had hoped for. Reluctantly she let go of him, the spot where his lips had caressed hers still tingling and she smiled. _Man, if every day was going to be like this…_"Sleep well?"

His eyes shone bright with joy. "Hardly at all. You?"

She shook her head, amused with his confession. "How could I? Well, eventually…"

"Same here," he said as he gratefully accepted the cup of coffee that she offered. The dark sweet roasted aroma of the freshly ground beans had lured him downstairs, as well as the realisation the woman of his dreams was there as well. She sat down opposite of him holding her cup in both hands, the circling steam competing with the curls of her hair that fell over her shoulders and framed her beautiful face where two lively hazel eyes lovingly looked into his. "I've been thinking," she said.

"Oh?" He grinned mischievously, "I had hoped my actions had rendered you unable…"

She stuck out her tongue. _You know exactly how much_. "As I said, I've been thinking…"

"Yes?"

"When you agreed on this assignment, just what assignment did you plan to execute?" She bit her lower lip as she smiled over the rim of her cup. "What do you think?"

"I think you went undercover within this undercover."

"Well," he said as he leaned a bit forward and stroked a curl of her hair aside. "I think I like your thinking." She took hold of his hand and pressed it against her cheek. "Well?"

"I also think you've been thinking the right thing." She frowned a little, amused. "That's a lot of thinking you did."

"As I said, I couldn't sleep last night. Oddly enough." He let his thumb gently caress the side of her lips and felt her shiver of joy. "You wouldn't happen to know why, would you?"

She shook her head and the curls danced with the motion, her expression joyous. "I wouldn't have the slightest clue. But, oddly enough," she quipped, "I had the exact same thing, so I think the question is justified whether _you_ know more than I?"

"Somehow I got the impression you were involved, seems I was mistaken."

"Let's refresh your memory then," she said and inched closer to him and her lips found his. _God, how on earth did she manage to get by in those years without this…_

"Definitely more clear now," he quipped when they had parted again.

"Good," she said smiling. "Glad I could be of assistance." She took a bowl and shook some Kellogg's Special K in them and reached for the milk to add. "Now we've been to Oscar's house, what's your impression?"

He lay back down the toast he was about to eat. "He's amicable, smart, definitely one to be careful about. What do you think?"

"I don't know yet. He's very kind. The last one you would suspect."

"Usually the ones that get away with things…"

"True, but he _really_ is the last one to expect it from. Maybe because he doesn't meet the regular standards of bad guys and girls we come across."

"It's not the realm of crime either where they'd roam freely."

Sue slowly emptied her bowl of cereals, a contemplating expression on her face that granted her an absent look he immediately admired. "THINK WHAT QQ" She focused back on him. "Sorry," she said and smiled. "I was just thinking about ways to lure him out, so to speak."

"Entrapment, you mean?"

"Yeah, sort of." He shrugged, "might work, but it has to be good, I don't think Oscar's easily fooled. Nor tempted."

"By the looks of it, he's not twenty-four-seven an art thief, or fencer. He doesn't have to be. I think he's in it for the thrill of it, and the additional profit as well."

"Ah, a Thomas Crown Affaire…" She smiled. _Oh, yes, starring you and me…_ "You know your classics…"

"Thank you." He gently bowed, grinning. "We'll just have to wait and see what Oscar's business will bring in the time to come. Maybe he has a slip of the tongue, anything."

"You're serious about this assignment as well, aren't you?" Sue smiled warmly at him. "Plan B," he said. "To some as important as Plan A to me."

"Would be quite something if we bodged this one, wouldn't it?"

"Not good." He stroked her hand. "But not as bad as the other…"

Somehow, someway, she had managed to get to bathroom and shower before she would walk Levi. She decided the easiest way to get dressed was to put on what she had worn last night. She combed her hair briefly and zipped her boots shut over her trousers. Temperature had not climbed much since their nightly escapade, and she opted for gloves as well as she stepped out of the house into the fresh morning air.

As Levi trotted back and forth she couldn't resist scooping up the piled up leafs with the toes of her boots, enjoying the twirling and dancing colours when she did. She was sure she had the most goofy grin on her lips as her mind kept rewinding the events that had passed and inwardly she glowed once again with passion as her thoughts of the man that had stayed at home kept recurring. _Home_, she mused and liked the word. A watery sun cautiously pierced through the thinning crowns of the trees and touched the red-brown leaf-covered soil every here and there like the dots on the fly amanitas that peaked above the grass, gently moving, disappearing and appearing as the branches swayed lightly with the wind.

She stopped to let the image of her house sink in from the distance, the chandelier that hung centred between the columns as an iron and glass marker that pinpointed exactly where her happiness had sprouted that night. She smiled, _her house_, _who would've thought_, and began walking again, Levi dashing off after whatever he found worthy of chasing. Nearby her house, movement caught her eyes and she saw Tamsin sweeping leaves out of the front lawn. She waved as soon as she saw Sue.

"Good morning," she said.

"Good morning," Sue answered and smiled. "You're up early."

"I know, and I don't even have an adorable dog to walk, mind you." Tamsin laughed and put the broom aside. "Morning's air is a healthy medicine."

"It is." Sue motioned Levi to sit down. "I'd like to thank you once more for that lovely dinner last night."

"Why thank you," Tamsin said, "It was our pleasure as well. I most enjoyed it."

"We did too."

"I hope Oscar didn't bore you with his endless obsession with antiques?"

Sue shook her head. _You should know…_ "Far from it, I'm a sucker for decoration and furniture." She smiled. "Why don't you join us for a cup of tea and I'll show you around."

"That would be lovely, dear," she said as she pulled her gardening gloves from her hands. "Let me drop these off first." She followed Sue over the garden path to the house. Sue let her in and took her coat. Smiling she followed Tamsin's enthusiasm as she took in the scenery of the hall. "It's beautiful, Sue, very classy. I already heard Oscar's praise but he tends to get carried away by even a baccarat ash-tray, but he was right; it is splendid."

"Thank you."

"Oh I love that chandelier, where did you get it? I always am on the lookout for one."

"We bought it on an auction after a foreclosure," Sue answered. "Being in the real estate has its benefits." Tamsin nodded as she looked at the glass again. "I can imagine."

"I liked that Louis XIV cupboard you had in the living room, Sue said as she escorted her to the living room. "The colour palette is still pristine. Unscathed as well."

"Yes, it is one of his treasures. I don't know how he came across it and why they even sold it. He actually bought it on an antique fair somewhere in Massachusetts." She sat down on the Chesterfield sofa and looked around at the room. "You have a gift for decorating, dear. Care to share a few tips?" Sue laughed as she retrieved tea cups and saucers. "Oh I don't know…"

"You're too modest," Tamsin stated, "there's good money in it. You should try."

"I might, one day, when real estate gets boring."

"Oscar always said the same thing. And look now."

"What kind of work does he do?"

"None, that is, apart from the arts and antiques." She smiled at Sue's frown. "He had a rather generous bonus when he was senior-director of Marks and Spencer. So generous he could devote his time to his passion, and move over here as well."

"Well, here's to hoping I'll be rewarded as well," Sue said and she poured tea in the cups. She sat down as well and pulled the legs of her boots up a little. "I can imagine he must travel for those bargains and fairs." Tamsin nodded after she took a sip. "If I had hoped that he would from then on be home more regularly, I'd be most disappointed." Sue smiled compassionately. "But I'm not complaining, dear. If I want to, you're just one door down." She laughed and winked.

"The door's always open, Tamsin."

"Very kind, dear. As a matter of fact, if you're interested in anything, Oscar's going away today for a day or two up north in Pennsylvania. I can ask him to look out for things for you."

"Well, I don't know…"

"He's seen your taste and style, maybe there's something he stumbles across."

"Who knows. Does he have a catalogue of some sort? Or how does he usually work. I hate to buy without seeing it first."

"Oh no, it's not compulsory. He usually drags home a lot, and then you could take a look. I meant that he would this time look more specifically for your taste."

"That would be most kind. If it isn't a problem…"

"Absolutely not. I'll tell Oscar to keep an eye open. Preferably two."

They chatted away for a while until she excused herself again to help Oscar pack. After she left Sue ran a hand through her hair and climbed the stairs. "Jack?" She halted on the threshold of his bedroom where he sat behind his laptop. He looked up and smiled. "Hey, sweetheart." Seeing his lips form the word she felt truly loved and wonderful.

"I like the sound of that," she said as she took his hands and pulled him closer. His eyes expressed joy as he inched closer. "Do you now? And how does it sound?" She smiled. "Like coming home." And she tenderly kissed him.

"What's the news?" he asked after a while.

"Tamsin's been round."

"I know."

"And told me that Oscar's off to Pennsylvania later today for a few days. We could alert law enforcement to be alert on burglaries in museums and houses for arts and the lot." He still had his arms round her waist and gently swayed her. "You've been busy I hear."

"Someone has to. You?"

"I checked with our databases about various high and low-profile items that might fit things we saw next-door." She stole a kiss from him and smiled. "Good thinking, partner."

"Thank you," he said. "We make quite a team don't we?"

"I'd like to think so."

"You know what I just thought of?" The lights dancing in his eyes gave them a mischievous appearance she found mesmerising. "What?"

"With Oscar away for a few days, that means the case is on hold as well."

"Meaning?" she asked, but the butterflies in her stomach already gave account of where he was heading to. "Meaning, we have plenty of spare time, waiting to be filled…"

Sue felt a shiver of joy trickling down her spine as his remark settled. _Oh, god, yes…_ "I like your thinking…" She leaned closer to him and longingly she found his lips once more.


	9. Chapter 9

_A/N: Answering your pleas :) Hadn't come 'round to say I sincerely appreciate all your comments! Still waiting for the inspiration to come back and make me able to either finish stories I've started, and/or to write a whole new one... _

* * *

**D**ifficile est longum subito deponere amorem

(**H**ow difficult it is to abandon a long cherished love so suddenly)

**Catullus**, _Carmina,_ _poem 76_ (56 BC)

**VII**

**A**lmost unnoticed the days went by, in that same loosened atmosphere they had both been hoping for at the beginning of their journey together, but now had little trouble in creating. She was ridiculously happy ever since they kissed on the doorstep and seamlessly this feeling lasted throughout the days and nights as she was able to give in to something she had been longing to do for years.

She almost regretted Oscar's return for it would demand more time and devotion to their actual assignment; not that of her heart. But at the same time it was thrilling as well when they had spotted him getting out of the a car. Their equipment made it possible to take a gander who was behind the steering wheel despite the tinted windows and they relayed the pictures to the Bureau, where after processing through NCIC an interesting name popped out. Oscar had been in the company of a known international arts and antiques trader that had popped up in numerous frauds and other cases. News from Pennsylvania trickled down as well that there had been a burglary in a mansion where only one or two exquisite items had been stolen. Now, they couldn't connect him to it, but the coincidence was at the very least remarkable, if not preposterous.

It began to become clear that Oscar might not be as spotless as he tried to appear to the outside world. They still couldn't picture Tamsin in all this, and the possibility couldn't be ruled out she was kept in the dark as much as anyone else.

"You know what he said last night?" Sue said as she put back a few plates from lunch in the kitchen cupboard. "No," Jack said, "unfortunately I can't read lips."

"Only good that I can, isn't it," she quipped and playfully brushed the tip of his nose. "Despite numerous, often successful, attempts to distract me."

"I have no idea what you're referring to."

"What he said, or what you were doing?" He smiled. "What he said…"

"He said the goods from the job were to be delivered to a warehouse in Southeast. Unfortunately, he didn't mention the address as he was pacing back and forth." She let her hand slide over his shoulder as she sat down again. "But I could've missed out on one or two things thanks to you…"

"Glad I could help…" He stole a kiss from her. "What did they say at the office?"

"I haven't heard from them today, yet."

Outside, the soft and friendly weather had changed with the winds, driving out the warm rays of the sun as grey clouds closed the sky and the first tokens of fog were creeping over the soil. Temperature had dropped overnight and through the forming clouds, moisture replaced the dry circumstances of before. Patches of anthracite Nimbostratus menacingly slowly rolled over the far hills as messengers of the rainfall to come. Sue looked out the window at the forming rags and warmed her hands on the cup of tea she still held. "Weather is getting cold."

"Let's hope it won't keep Oscar from his useful habit of having a smoke outdoors and handling a few calls."

"That would be a setback," Sue acknowledged. His frequent outdoor activities were all recorded by CCTV installed that covered most of the Beckett's premises, motion-sensitive camera's with night-vision that enabled clear footage even at dusk and night. For Sue it was the ideal footage to study, having the time to make sure she got everything that was being said, instead of making ad hoc decisions and assumptions. It had given them useful information already they knew from getting reports back from the team.

"When are we going to move in?" Sue had turned her gaze away from the developing disconsolateness outside. "I don't know, we have circumstantial evidence now at best, nothing solid. He's a cool customer, Oscar, might take a long time to catch him red-handed. If at all."

_I wouldn't mind if this job took forever_, she thought. "We'll just have to wait and see."

"Exactly," he said. "And meanwhile, make the best of it which, I must say, we're getting good at lately." Levi, until then calmly lying on the kitchen floor suddenly heaved his head at the same time as Jack turned his head.

"HAPPEN WHAT QQ"

"DOOR," he said. "ME GO." She nodded and put her cup in the sink to wash it as he left the kitchen, followed by her dog. She smiled at the sight, _like it's always been like this._ She had her back at the entrance when she felt Levi's paw gently nudging her thigh. She turned to see what was happening. She frowned, suddenly feeling a knot in her stomach. "Sir?"

"Thomas," Garrett said. "Could you join us in the living room?" His serious expression had her worried something was terribly wrong. She dried her hands on the towel before she followed her supervisor to the living room. Her eyes sought Jack's who, upon meeting, displayed the same worry she felt. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, Thomas."

"Then, what brings you here? We didn't know you were coming…"

"It is, as you undoubtedly are assuming, about the case we sent you out upon." Garrett sat back a little as he observed both his Agents. "First of all, congratulations on a job well done…"

"You mean Oscar's been arrested?" Jack broke through, frowning whilst at the same time displaying surprise. Garrett shook his head. "No, and I doubt whether that will happen at all." He pursed his lips, contemplating. "Then, what do we need to be congratulated for?" Sue asked, totally confused.

"Your undercover managed to work so well it took a while before we got news that we had to abort the mission."

"Abort it? We're just getting started, information is coming, we…" Jack was silenced when Garrett held up his hand. "If you let me finish… Unknown to us we're involved in a long-rolling undercover sting that our activities were about to infringe."

"I don't get it." Sue felt how nausea began to roam freely where joy had been before as she processed the words her supervisor said. "Oscar Beckett, the man you were sat about to be spying upon turns out to be an undercover agent in an international sting to retrieve stolen art and catch the perpetrators."

"What? What office?"

"Scotland Yard, acting in close interaction with Interpol and only known to the higher echelons of the FBI and the State Department and Department of Justice. That's why it took a while before they found out we were on him as well, possibly jeopardising the whole mission."

_This can't be happening…_

"When they did, alarm bells were starting to go off at a lot of desks and in a lot of offices in Washington, London, Vienna." He smiled apologetically. "We only heard early this morning. If that's any comfort." _No, no, no comfort at all…_ She felt her heart sink as slowly everything began to fall apart of which she had dreamed before and was actually living the past few days.

"I do had to compliment you for your efforts, they never guessed where the information was coming from. The Attorney General wanted me to tell you."

"Err, Thanks?" Jack smiled uneasy, and glanced sideways at Sue. She looked forlorn and he more that understood why. He felt the same. _I know, sweetheart…_

"That means, effectively today, the assignment is over." Garrett stood up and gave both his Agents a hand. "It is as it is, I can't help it either. I'm as surprised as you are. I'll leave you to finish up here." He walked out of the room.

Jack sat motionless for a while, still dumbfounded at the suddenness of it all. One minute everything was okay, the next the sky was tumbling down on them like the grey clouds that rolled over the neighbourhood as the first droplets of rain ticked against the windows. _I can't believe it's over_… He looked at the precious blonde opposite of him whose tan has turned a little ashen and his heart pained. He gently tapped her leg and she slowly focused on him. "SORRY," he said. "ME SURPRISE SAME."

"ME KNOW," she answered. Her eyes looked into his and he saw regret and something he could only label as anxiousness surface in hers. "What are we going to do, Jack?"

"I don't know…"

"This can't be it….can it?" He was about to respond when the door-bell rang again. He got up to see who was at their door. "Hello," Oscar said, looking a bit uneasy, Tamsin was next to him. "Can we come in?" Wordlessly Jack stepped back and gestured they could before closing the door behind them. They stood all a bit helplessly in the hall before he escorted them to the living room. Sue got up from her chair, a pained expression on her face as Tamsin and Oscar entered the room.

"We, eh, don't know what to say really," Oscar began. "I can imagine you are as overwhelmed as we were when we had unexpected visitors this morning."

"You have no idea…" Jack sat down opposite the couple.

"We never knew," Tamsin said, "it simply did not cross our minds, once."

"I hope you're not mad at us." Tamsin looked at Sue and smiled. "No, of course not, dear. It's all part of the game."

"We wanted you to know that we won't hold a grudge or anything. In our line of work, one can expect things."

"Our line of work?" Sue sounded surprised. "You're both Scotland Yard?"

They shook their heads. "No, I'm originally Scotland Yard, Tamsin works for UNESCO."

"You're not married in fact at all?"

"Oh, no, quite the contrary: we are. That's why they asked us for the job." Tamsin smiled.

"I see," Jack said, "we still hadn't figured out your role in all this."

"From what they told us, you already figured out a lot about me," Oscar said. "Which is a compliment in my book, I must say."

Sue felt her thoughts drift away during their conversation, feeling immensely awkward and the bitter realisation things had ended once again left a bad taste in her mouth as well as a pained heart. Despite Oscar's plea not to feel guilty, she did, how could she not? It would've been different if they had done the right thing and he had been guilty, a satisfactory end. Now, set under these conditions, it felt as they had been found out, instead of them. She knew it was selfish, but she felt bad much and foremost about her and Jack. What had started to blossom ever so gently was suddenly smothered before it would have had a chance to grow.

She focused back on their visitors. "I take it this, marriage, is part of the cover as well?" she saw Oscar ask, "or is it real?" She suddenly felt nausea creep up and a chill clasping her heart.

"No," Jack said, "it is not."

"Oh…Well, I must say that I never got the impression that was not real," Tamsin said and smiled warmly, despite her best intentions Sue felt her world shatter as soon as his words that formed his response were comprehended by her brain. "Seems you were mistaken about that. It is…"

_Seems I was mistaken about it too…_ She managed to get up, without sagging back when her knees were about to buckle. "If you'll excuse me…" she said and with the first few steps it felt as if the world was spinning round like she was profoundly drunk. Not stumbling over anything, she reached the kitchen where she rested her head against the doorframe as dizziness overtook her senses and his words poisoned her system like vitriol. Feeling the environment slowly took her breath away she knew only one way out to refresh herself and try to stop the bitterness from taking over. She had to leave and find peace of mind, undisturbed, trying to figure out what she would do now that everything had come apart. Strolling through Rock Creek, she had found such a place, and every now and then she visited that sanctuary to recuperate. Now, more than ever, she needed to be alone. Let the betrayal wither to a point that it might become bearable again.

Numbed, she slipped on her coat and left the house she once called home, without seeing back, feeling the first hot tears burning in her eyes waiting to be shed in sync with the steady trail of rain and moist that soaked the landscape and washed away the happy feelings that now seemed so distant.


	10. Chapter 10

**H**onderd mannen maken slechts kampement, een vrouw 'n thuis.

**A** hundred men can make an encampment, but it requires a woman to make a home

**Dutch Proverb**

* * *

**VIII**

* * *

**T**he steady watery veil that was draped over the surroundings and herself made her shiver as the wind steadily picked up momentum and began piercing her clothes. The bench she sat on offered no comfort at all, and she shifted a bit to ease the discomfort. Feeling the sobs slowly falter as her heart calmed again, the tears that had been shed were lost on the droplets of water that dripped from the bangs of her wet hair on her cheeks. She felt tired, very tired. After the buzzing vibration of her phone finally was gone, with her last strength she managed to force herself to look at the screen. The digits formed the name of the man that had just shattered her dreams, and crushed her heart and she felt the strong pain sear through her nerves again. She closed her eyes. _Fool, _she admonished herself inwardly, _what did you expect else?_ She smiled a bitter smile, feeling how the knot in her stomach tightened.

After a while she felt the dual vibration of an incoming message on her thigh. She closed her eyes shortly. _Let me be in peace…_ Her eyes followed the trail of the progressing fog that crept up from the shores of Rock Creek as she had opened them again. Strangely enough, it felt as if her cell phone was almost burning through the layers of clothes and she suddenly couldn't resist retrieving it, reasoning a message wasn't as scary as talking to him. She hesitated initially before she looked at the screen, wiping away a bang of her wet hair that fell over her cheek. "_Look behind you…_"

Not having time himself to come to terms with the suddenness of it all he had noticed during the Beckett's visit how Sue's face paled when Tamsin had asked about their marriage. She had got up, and he thought she only left for the bathroom to recuperate, drink some water, anything. But upon finding out she had left he grew anxious, if not afraid. She had looked forlorn, sharing the same feeling he had felt but that with their neighbour's interrupted couldn't be spoken out, and when he had wanted to, she was gone.

He tried to call her several times when he raced through DC traffic, windscreen wipers fully on, but she didn't answer. Weather had worsened and the upcoming fog would soon make it very hard to make out anything. But he had no choice, he had to go after the woman he loved, that completed him on so many levels her absence felt as if he had lost a limb, was bereft of a part of his soul. His heart pained so much, out of precaution he took a pre-emptive dose of his medicines just in case the hurt over her was in fact something else. After his unsuccessful attempts to reach her he made a call to Tara and begged her for her help to find Sue. With her guidance, as well as the team's, he was now staring at the forlorn looking woman that sat mere feet away from him. Obviously hurting, she had her head rested in her hands before she looked in the distance. He could barely manage Levi to sit down next to him, the dog must have honed in on his mistress' agony and was writhing to reach her. He couldn't stand to see her like this either, and his fingers typed a message: Look behind you…

He could hear the soft dual tones that accompanied the arrival of his message on her device and for a few heart-wrenching moments she sat almost motionless before she took out her phone, wiping away her hair, a movement that even in these conditions had him spellbound. Then, slowly, she turned round and her eyes met his.

There, standing in the mist, hair moist, ashen face with her faithful hearing dog next to him was standing the man that had fully captured her heart and soul and who had been able to hurt her so much. Yet, the moment she met his dark chocolate eyes she sensed he was hurting as much as she was. The usual dark tints bleached, his strong appearance fragile. He looked lost, almost haunted and she couldn't hold back her emotions anymore. The muscles of her jaw tightened, and she began to cry.

She was breathtakingly beautiful, and so fragile, the moment he saw her crying, and he vowed that same instant that he would never be the reason for those tears again, ever. Letting go of Levi's leash he was almost as soon with her as the dog as he knelt beside her and took her in his arms, feeling her body rock with her sobs as he gently swayed her. He tenderly kissed her temple as she rested her head on his shoulder, her arms around him, holding him close. He felt the same magic that had accompanied that tender embrace that started out the wonderful life he was now sure of he could never be without again. Or to be without her.

Pressing his nose in her hair he revelled in her scent once more, feeling her shiver with his touch. A few tears were still glistening in her eyes, adding a diamond touch to her already enchanting hazel colour. He tenderly cupped her chin and he could see her lips parting, longingly, before his lips met and he poured his soul into their kiss.

"You scared me to death when I found out you were gone," he said, still holding her. She smiled a weak smile. He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it softly. "I grew afraid I had lost you when you didn't answer."

"What was I going to say?" her voice nearly faltered and she pressed her lips together, swallowing back a few tears. He smiled. "It wouldn't matter what you might have wanted to say or not," he said and raised her chin when her eyes shied down. "It would have given me the opportunity to explain what I meant to say earlier."

"I don't understand, you were pretty clear…"

"No, I wasn't. At least, not to you." He looked at their intertwined hands before he spoke again. "I never 'faked' loving you Susan, I never pretended kissing you with all my heart and soul. I never could do that after what happened Tuesday night." He stroked her hand and smiled. "Did it ever occurred to you I didn't want it to end like last time?"

A smile crept on her face and her eyes began to shimmer with more light. "I had my theories…"

"They weren't theories," he said. "I hope I somehow made that clear…" He got up to sit next to her on the bench. "You were spot on when you said I went undercover for this undercover. My plan A that still is in effect even though plan B busted." He tugged her closer and softly kissed her temple. "I couldn't care less about plan B, honestly."

The reluctant smile had gradually grown wider and brighter until it resembled the smile that always touched him, that could brighten his every mood. "That is such a sweet thing to say…"

"I mean it."

She leaned her head against his, closing her eyes shortly as her hands cupped his face. "I know…" Her lips longingly captured his and he let her tongue ravish his mouth and mind, poising his soul and still his anxious heart.

"I don't want to see this as the end," he said after they had parted for air, both slightly panting. "But rather the beginning."

"Me too." Sue fumbled with the slips on her jacket. "I'm sorry." She looked up again and smiled. "It's just…" She sighed before continuing. "It's a crazy day, I never expected it to end so soon, so abrupt. Then there was you as well, the things that were said…I couldn't take it, Jack and I ran…"

"It's okay, I found you before darkness set, which is good, because I get spooked in the dark quite easily." She smiled with his remark. "Especially if I'm alone."

"You're not alone now."

"That's why I'm not spooked yet." He playfully tipped her nose and drew a tender, sensual line over her lips which led her to suddenly nibble his finger. "Hey…"

She bit her lip, her eyes playfully. "Just checking if you're really not spooked."

"And?"

"You're not."

"That's what I said." He squinted his eyes as he stared off towards Hawthorne. "But we're running out of time. And you're wet as well."

"I'm okay."

"You are, now. But if that wind keeps on going you'll catch a bad cold."

"Only if you promise to spoil me when I do," she said and stole a kiss from him. She hugged him and felt how he warmed her through her damp clothes. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"Coming after me."

He smiled. "I love you, Sue. That contributes to a very incoherent brain at times, but sometimes there's sense somewhere around. It seemed the right thing to do, anyway."

She had to smile with his quip and she leaned over for a small grateful kiss on his cheek. "I love you too, but still. Thank you." He draped his arm around her when they got up, pulling her close and unwilling to let her go again, with Levi happily dashing round them. "Come, let's bring you home."

_Home,_ she thought and had to smile. _Which one…_ Halfway through the drive she noticed that wherever they were going, it wasn't to her place in Northeast. She frowned initially but that was quickly replaced by an ever more pounding heart and a knot in her stomach from anticipation. "Where are we going?"

"You'll see," he said and smiled. When they turned the corner to their street and through the fading daylight their house came into view, the chandelier shining bright and from the windows light was streaming, her breathing nearly faltered. He halted his car on the sweep and killed the ignition. The soft vibration of the engine died and she looked at him. "What… what's going on?"

"Come inside and I'll tell you." He leaned over for a tender kiss that sent her heart speeding. "That is, if you want to…" _God, yes…_

He reached for her hand and she felt the magical touch tantalising her senses as if it was electrical and together they climbed the stone steps that led to the entrance. Only letting go of her hand to retrieve the keys and open the door he stepped inside and motioned her to follow him. Her heart racing she did as he walked through the hall and into the living room where all the lights had been switched on. As soon as she stepped into the room her breath caught as she saw the whole team standing there. Dimitrius, Bobby, Tara, Myles, Lucy, Garrett, Troy, Charlie and even the Becketts. They were all smiling at her. "Welcome home!"

"I…" she turned to look at Jack who tried to look casual, but failed. "W..what's going on, what are you doing here?"

"We're here to welcome you back again, in your house. And to bear witness to the occasion," Myles said. "Only following orders, Sheila," Bobby responded. Tara and Lucy hugged her, smiling both. "HOME, TRUE WELCOME GIVE (you) US WANT."

"But…why here? I don't understand." She turned to Jack. He took her hand and she felt her heart jolt with this motion. Her eyes fixed on his lips.

"I really went for an assignment within an assignment this time. Of the mind and heart, and when the idea came up I could only hope you would be willing to follow me." He smiled. "What I never told you is that this house was part of the assignment."

"I, I know, we lived here…"

"No, that's not it. I made it part of the deal." Her brows drew and she was confused, the smiling faces of her friends did little to help her out. "I don't quite follow you…"

Garrett waved for her attention. "The only way Jack was willing to step into this assignment with you was that he would be able to buy the house afterwards. After he told us what he had planned for it, we agreed."

Sue looked back at Jack. "I had vowed that this time, I couldn't let this opportunity pass, and to have you live with me. Not only now, but for the times to come." Suddenly feeling nervous, he smiled as he touched her ring. "The true assignment this time was to let you know just how much you mean to me. And to show you how much I love you…" He gestured at the gathered team. "I called them as soon as you were gone, to find out where you had gone. And when I knew where to look, I instructed them to come here. It supposedly helps to make me do what I'm about to do next."

Her breath caught as he kneeled in front of her and from Bobby he received a small black velvet covered box. With trembling hand he opened it and embedded in white silk lay the most beautiful ring she had ever seen. The small blue diamond that twinkled in the light that touched it adding a gracious and enchanting touch. He looked up to her and swallowed hard, and met a pair of wonderfully flushed hazel eyes that suddenly made everything easy. "Susan Thomas, will you marry me?"

With a barely withheld cry she threw her arms around his neck as tears streamed down her cheeks. "Yes, I do!... god, I do, I do…." He had seen her cry earlier but that did not resemble anything he was witnessing now as she cried tears of happiness, love and longing and he couldn't do anything else than kiss her passionately, forgetting they were not alone. When they parted, her hands were still caressing his face, hair, and her cheeks were wet with tears as she smiled the most beautiful smile ever. He swayed her lovingly before he took her hand. With bated breath she watched as he tenderly took her 'old' ring and slid the real one over her finger. She looked up into his eyes, filled with love and burning with passion. And everything came together, right at that very moment. All those years were forgotten, all ifs and buts rendered irrelevant as the man of her heart was truly hers. The token of his love and affection now crowning her hand for everyone to see.

"Welcome home, Sue," he said and kissed her tenderly, thus starting a whole new assignment. One that would last forever.

**The End**


End file.
